AI Collaborations on Science Fiction

Science fiction has long been fascinated by robots, cyborgs, and artificial intelligence (AI). But can AI write science fiction? As AI-powered tools emerge for generating texts, images, and more, what might be the future of science fiction itself?

For their final projects in ENG 376 “Science Fiction: Humans, Machines, and In-Betweens” (Maymester 2023), students were assigned to write their own scifi story in collaboration with generative AI. They experimented with text-generating platforms like ChatGPT and LEX as well as Midjourney for creating AI art. Like the course theme, their projects emerge at the thresholds “between” humans and machines.

The stories included in this exhibit are not “about” AI; instead, they engage with the questions it has raised. How does AI expand, distort, or restrict our imaginative horizons? What happens to writing, creativity, and intellectual property when AI generates content? How can we envision appropriate ways to collaborate with AI? As a genre, science fiction is well-equipped to explore the social and ethical horizons of emerging technologies. Thanks to NC State University Libraries, students get the chance to “think and do” just that.