Diffusion TV: Experiencing Diffusion Models through Tangible, Embodied Interaction

Abstract:Diffusion TV is an interactive AI art installation that offers a tangible and embodied experience of diffusion models through a modified CRT TV. By physically manipulating the TV's antenna, audiences control the clarity of AI-generated images and sounds, metaphorically enacting the denoising process that underlies diffusion-based generation. Using the tuning knob, participants switch between three channels featuring AI-generated animals from the Past (extinct species), Present (endangered species), and Future (speculative creatures), situating the interaction within a temporal and ecological narrative. Through continuous audiovisual feedback and physical interaction, Diffusion TV foregrounds the generative process over final outputs, allowing audiences to explore intermediate states as experiential material. Rather than providing explicit technical explanation, the work presents an alternative, embodied mode of explainable AI that invites exploratory engagement with and reflection on generative technologies.

In Proceedings of Explainable AI for the Arts Workshop 2026 (XAIxArts 2026) arXiv:2607.20131

Human-Computer Interaction (cs.HC); Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI)

arXiv:2609.05404 [cs.HC]

(or arXiv:2609.05404v1 [cs.HC] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2609.05404 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite (pending registration)

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