# Episode 84: Art and robotics - Steve Benford

- Show: [Robot Talk](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk)
- Published: 2024-05-10
- Length: 30m
- Episode: 84
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford
- Listen: https://ukrobotics.libsyn.com/episode-eighty-four-steve-benford

## Summary

Steve Benford, Dunford Professor of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham and co-founder of the Mixed Reality Laboratory, discusses artistic applications of robotics, including the 'Cat Royale' installation and dance collaborations. He explains how working with artists like Blast Theory reveals deeper questions about trust, safety, and the design of robot-environments, challenging standard engineering assumptions about explainable AI and error-free systems. Benford highlights the methodological tensions between scientific iteration and open-ended artistic exploration, arguing that robots must be designed to be 'collidable' and integrated into human spaces rather than kept in invisible cages.

## Chapters

- [0:08](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=8) Introduction: Steve Benford and the Mixed Reality Lab
- [2:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=143) Blending Real and Virtual: The Lab's Motivation and Artistic Collaborations
- [7:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=474) Cat Royale: Designing a Robot to Play with Cats and the Ecology of Trust
- [15:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=931) Designing Robot Worlds: Enclosures, Computer Vision, and Cat Behavior
- [19:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=1195) Dancing with Robots: Bodily Contact, Kanduco, and Improvisation
- [26:05](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=1565) Collidability: Embracing Collision and Breaking the Industrial Robot Paradigm
- [27:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/robot-talk/2024-05-10-episode-84-art-and-robotics-steve-benford#t=1629) Epistemological Differences: Art, Ambiguity, and the Future of AI

## Topics

- [Robotics & autonomy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/robotics-and-autonomy)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Security & privacy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/security-and-privacy)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Mixed Reality Laboratory (other)
- Cat Royale (product)
- Kanduco (company)
- Boston Dynamics Spot (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [269: Entertainment Meets Automation: How andyRobot is Leveraging Robotics for Lady Gaga, Drake, and More](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2026-01-06-269-entertainment-meets-automation-how-andyrobot-is-leveraging-robotics-for-lady) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [341: Big Hugs to Everybody](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2020-08-13-341-big-hugs-to-everybody) (Embedded.fm)
- [525: Some Sort of Metal](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-05-14-525-some-sort-of-metal) (Embedded.fm)
- [375: Hiding in Your Roomba](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2021-06-03-375-hiding-in-your-roomba) (Embedded.fm)
- [Interview: Roboticist Ayanna Howard | Memories May Be Beautiful, And Yet | Math & Neptune](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2020-09-25-interview-roboticist-ayanna-howard-memories-may-be-beautiful-and-yet-math-neptun) (EE Times Current)

## Citing this page

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