Wider Than The Sky

What does Sasha Waltz’s contemporary dance company have in common with robots controlled by A.I. at ETH in Zürich? Apparently, nothing. Looking more closely, we discover how scientists “train” their algorithms with thousands of virtual robots who learn by trial and error, like the dancers. They both use forms of collective intelligence to improve. Just like scientists at the Human Brain Project, trying to draw the first complete map of the human brain with the help of a powerful A.I. which is inspired… to the human brain itself.

World-renowned artists and scientists explore the different paths artificial intelligence is taking. From “black-box” corporations that are trying to keep A.I.’s development secret, to a dramatic drone race pitting human world champions vs. a powerful A.I.…  the film shows how close we are to a time in which wider than the sky could very well be not a human brain. Conscience, empathy, imagination, feelings… territories that once belonged to what we used to call “soul”: can we really map them? Can we transfer them to artificial intelligence?

Valerio Jalongo seeks answers to these questions in WIDER THAN THE SKY.

A new world is emerging, where robots may soon have feelings. Where a dance company embodies the living metaphor of a shared, open way with which A.I. should be developed. Where artists envision a collective use of this intelligence to collaborate and shape a positive future for humanity.