Humanization of Objects and Objectification of Humans. Vilém Flusser’s Philosophy of Apparatus and AI
This article examines two major trends in human civilization, namely the humanization of objects and the objectification of humans, through the media philosophy of Vilém Flusser. Here, objects broadly refer to all human-made items, but primarily indicate means of production (tools, machines, apparatus) in a narrower sense. Specifically, this article traces the historical tendency of objects increasingly resembling the human body and brain since the advent of humanity, and conversely, humans progressively resembling the objects they create. Among these tendencies, it particularly analyzes in detail the trends of the artificial intelligence era driven by apparatus: the intelligentization of objects and the robotization of humans. As specific examples for this analysis, the article presents photographic apparatus as the first apparatus, and apparatus-humans (photographers and spectators, all of us). Through this, the article aims to uncover the fundamental meanings of recently emerging academic paradigms such as artificial intelligence and robot, and reveal the deep-seated causes underlying contemporary human robotization.
After Technical Images: Towards a Theory of Post-Technical Imaging
While Flusser’s concept of technical images remains foundational for understanding modern image-making, its limitations become evident when applied to emerging visual culture, which operates beyond immediate human sensory capabilities and constraints of previous apparatus. This essay proposes the concept of corporeal imaging as an alternative system that classifies imaging as relational to the body. This taxonomy enables the incorporation of contemporary imaging practices such as networked astronomical observations and generative AI systems that supersede traditional single-body relations. These developments necessitate new theoretical approaches for understanding image making beyond technical imaging.
Flusser on Artificial Intelligence
This article unfolds along five thematic constellations where Flusser’s thought enters dialogue with contemporary developments in artificial intelligence. It begins by contrasting his conception of the apparatus with Alan Turing’s model of simulation. It then turns to Flusser’s notion of variational creation and its relevance to the generative logic of AI systems. The third section engages with his idea of the black box (a system accessible at only two points, input and output) in relation to the opacity of machine learning models. The fourth addresses the epistemological problem of learning from scratch, drawing on experimental research by Gašper Beguš. The final section reflects on mediated communication across species, bringing together Vampyroteuthis infernalis and recent AI-based studies of whale vocalization. Together, these reflections offer a philosophical framework for thinking through the epistemic, technical, and ethical stakes of AI—one that resists both anthropocentric assumptions and computational reductionism.