Physical AI Switch

Preliminary Abstract

Today's world is shaped by generative artificial intelligence (genAI) more than by any other technology. In a rush to be early adopters, companies try to include genAI in their products, neglecting their users' need for agency, control, and trust. We propose a layered approach to give users control over whether they want to use genAI and to what degree: (1) genAI is completely disabled, (2) a locally hosted AI model is employed, and (3) the model has access to the internet. As tangible interfaces have proven to increase trust when it comes to privacy & security, we developed several tangible control mechanisms for users to switch between the different stages and evaluated them in an explorative study.

Goal

In this bachelors thesis, you will explore the design space of tangible interfaces for controlling generative AI access. Specifically, you will conceptualize and prototype a couple of distinct physical "AI switches", each offering different interaction modalities. The process will begin with low-fidelity ideation (e.g., pen-and-paper sketches), followed by the development of functional prototypes using microcontrollers (e.g., ESP32), electronic components (buttons, switches, displays), and digital fabrication techniques (e.g., 3D printing, laser cutting). The prototypes will be evaluated in a comparative, exploratory user study using a Wizard-of-Oz setup, simulating the different AI access levels without needing a fully functional backend.

What we expect

• You have experience with hardware (working with microcontrollers, 3D printing etc.)
• You can work and solve problems independently
• You are creative

What you get

• Two committed supervisors, weekly meetings, and hands-on advice
• Being part of state-of-the-art research on AI-user-interaction
• A bachelors thesis