Interfacing AlphaGo: Embodied play, object agency, and algorithmic drama
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Level 5 by design analogy (qualitative STS video analysis and theoretical case critique; non-clinical).
OpenAlex W4387077820 · doi:10.1177/03063127231191284
What was done
The author performed a reflexive video analysis of the 2016 Go match between the AI program AlphaGo and professional player Lee Sedol, focusing on game two's 'move 37', its live physical delivery on stage, and the accompanying expert broadcast commentary. The study analyzed the exhibition match as a technology demonstration from a Science and Technology Studies (STS) perspective.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative measurements. Qualitatively, it found that the intelligibility of AlphaGo's play and narratives of 'superhuman intelligence' depended heavily on embodied human-machine interfacing practices during the live demonstration, which mainstream media coverage utilized but systematically obscured.
Why it matters
It demonstrates how cultural perceptions of AI agency and breakthrough performance are shaped by real-time human staging, physical embodiment, and broadcast framing, rather than computational capability alone.
Limits
The study is a descriptive, qualitative single-case analysis of a single event and specific video recordings. It lacks quantitative metrics, generalizable samples, or comparative experimental conditions.
Cited by
- context In game three of the five-game match between AlphaGo and Lee Sedol, AlphaGo played move 37, a move Go masters had not previously conceived.