The theme of the 2024 CES, the world's largest consumer electronics show held in Las Vegas, USA in January, was All On. Over the past five years, there has been a surge in interest and investment in artificial intelligence, and companies' attempts to commercialize it are now becoming more visible in the everyday lives of the public. This means that we are witnessing the AI-ification of all industries. Just as we don't need to bring up the internet as a topic of conversation because it is naturally a part of our lives, a quiet revolution in the everyday application of AI is rapidly unfolding.

In 2016, Google's AI Go program, AlphaGo, captured the world's attention when it defeated a professional Go player using neural networks. The program learned to play Go by itself and executed millions of scenarios. This case became a very persuasive example of the potential of AI, but it was a sad event for professional Go players who had dedicated their lives to the game. It also served as a reminder of the natural assumption that humans are the ones who play Go. Chatbots as conversational partners, self-driving cars that take charge of driving, and digital tools related to productivity that summarize and translate documents, are all the products of technological designs that stem from the relative roles of humans. Apple's Vision Pro is an attempt to expand experiences based on human senses such as sight, touch, and hearing, while the prosthetic robot finger Mark 7D, a disability aid device, assists in the restoration of human activity.

However, behind the growing interest in this technological leap, there is always the 'body', which has existed from the beginning of human history to the present. We need to talk about this more intentionally in the future. This is because we are witnessing a historical renegotiation of the body, the most basic and sensory element of our being.

If our fundamental perspective on the body, which is connected to ourselves and the world around us, is changing, then what will replace it? What are the current criteria by which we desire someone and feel connected to them? How will the way things, companies, and ultimately humans interact with each other change? As new ideals and desires, and the relationship with the body, are concretized, understanding the changing relationship between us and the body can play a key role in predicting future commercial opportunities for new technologies ranging from computing to biotechnology and materials science, new products ranging from beauty care to automobiles, and companies considering sustainability investments.

The concept of the body has been a key concern throughout history. Scholars in the 21st century define the relationship between the body and humans as 'forgetfulness'. This is an expression that reflects the changing social focus on the 'perfect body' in the present, where various technologies make us forget how real organisms stink, age, and die. However, on the other hand, social discourse, aesthetics, consumption, technology, and biological innovations, in almost every field, are seeing a shift from the logical and neutral thinking about the human body of the past to an uncontrollable, felt, and passionate direction, that is, an acceptance of the body as the body itself.

As a new sexual revolution, social acceptance of gender and sexual orientation is becoming more widely accepted, and the food and biotechnology industries are making great strides in their ability to present products and treatments that accept the artificial as natural. We are rediscovering the charm of unknown living creatures around us, such as gut microbiota. This tension between immersion in the body itself and attempts to extend bodily functions is expected to continue. In this regard, we need to ask more specific questions and focus on the following three topics.

First, sex and intimacy, when viewed through social phenomena such as singlehood and declining birth rates, can be considered topics that are becoming more privately distant from consumers than before. It is necessary to determine where the purpose of seduction is heading in the consideration of classic marketing strategies such as sex appeal. Second, nature and decay are topics that signify interest in aesthetics through natural materials that appear to be alive. It is necessary to understand what the new popular aesthetics are, which seek to transcend the previous extraction paradigm and view even nature itself as an object of optimization. Third, technology and the body are topics that allow us to see the new relationship we have with our bodies under the goal of next-generation augmented and virtual reality. In order to understand the potential of technology in the interaction between humans and machines, and in the physical and digital worlds, it is necessary to see its business and social applicability based on the body.

References

CES: Artificial Intelligence

“Korea is the brand”… KOTRA to set up the largest integrated Korea pavilion [CES 2024]

What is the secret to the victory of Google's AI 'AlphaGo', which beat a professional Go player?