[vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/4″][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”3\/4″][vc_single_image image=”15701″ full_width=”1″ onclick=”custom_link” opacity=”100″ animated_svg=”1″ link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fzkm.de%2Fen%2F2026%2F03%2Fenvisioning-ai-legacy-and-impact-of-the-connection-machine|||”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
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Why do certain technologies fall into oblivion\u2014and what can we learn from them today?<\/strong> The Connection Machine (CM) was the first commercial supercomputer with a massively parallel architecture \u2013 a technological pioneering achievement that contributed significantly to the development of modern high-performance computers (HPC) and AI systems. Developed in the years between 1983 and 1994 by Thinking Machines Corporation (TMC), the Connection Machines \u2013 featuring the models CM-1, CM-2, and CM-5 \u2013 were inspired by the question of how intelligence emerges in the human brain through complex, networked, and parallel processing.<\/p>\n Beyond its technical innovations, the CM was distinguished by a design philosophy that treated visualization as an integral part of computation. It translated abstract principles such as massive parallelism into a spatial, \u201celectronic brain\u201d\u2013like form that made internal processes perceptible. At a time when contemporary AI systems\u2014especially large-scale language models\u2014largely remain visually opaque, the CM continues to serve as a reference for the epistemic role of design in mediating between technical complexity and broader comprehension.<\/p>\n The diverse expertise that came together in the CM series found its way into the work of influential technology companies through various paths following the company\u2019s bankruptcy. For instance, parts of TMC were acquired directly by Sun Microsystems in 1994 (which was itself later acquired by Oracle in 2010). In addition, several innovative startups founded by former TMC employees were taken over by big digital corporations \u2013 such as Alexa Internet by Amazon or Metaweb by Google. Despite its far-reaching technological influence, CM\u2019s formative role in the history of AI and high-performance computing remained largely unrecognized after TMC filed for bankruptcy in 1994. The aim of the upcoming conference is therefore to foreground CM\u2019s previously unknown legacy: as a visionary technology that shaped the development of today\u2019s AI and supercomputing landscape. This will be accomplished through three thematic sections exploring the following aspects of CM: its technological complexity, the aesthetics of its design, and the AI\u00a0landscape as of today. At the same time, the conference aims to analyze why the achievements of this supercomputer \u2013 so far ahead of its time \u2013 have faded into obscurity.<\/p>\n In parallel to the conference, a historical CM-2 will be on display in the ZKM foyer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Day 1, Session 1: Day 2, Session 2: Day 2, Session 3: Confirmed participants include the team behind the machine\u2019s development (W. Daniel Hillis, Brewster Kahle, Lew Tucker), scholars Thomas Haigh (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee), Heiner Igel (Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich), Johannes Schemmel (University of Heidelberg), designers Tamiko Thiel and Gordon Bruce, design curators Natalie Kane (Victoria & Albert Museum, London) and Paul Galloway (Museum of Modern Art, New York), as well as artists and researchers Sarah Ciston, Tiara Roxanne, Cecilie Waagner Falkenstr\u00f8m and Kim Albrecht.<\/p>\n Conceived and developed by: Michael Beigl<\/a>, Alistair Hudson<\/a>, Daria Mille<\/a>, Tamiko Thiel<\/a> [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Conference at ZKM | Center for Art and Media<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":15701,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[362],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15719","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-blogs","entry","clearfix","entry-post-module-layout-sidebar-right","thumbnail-color-tone-dark","entry-post","entry-standard","entry-post-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15719"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15719"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15719\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15729,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15719\/revisions\/15729"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15701"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15719"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15719"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dam.org\/museum\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15719"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nHow did the Connection Machine combine computation, design, and ideas of intelligence?<\/strong>
\nAnd what does its example reveal about today\u2019s largely opaque AI systems?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\u00a0<\/strong><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n
<\/h3>\n
Sessions<\/h3>\n
\nFriday, March 27
\nTechnical Legacy and Impact of the Connection Machine<\/p>\n
\nSaturday, March 28
\nComputational Aesthetics: Design and Creative Practice on the Connection Machine<\/p>\n
\nSaturday, March 28
\nFrom Thinking Machines to Today\u2019s AI Landscape<\/p>\nSpeakers<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
Imprint<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
\nProject Assistance: Hanna Jurisch<\/a>
\nSupported by: Hosna Karnama, Sasha Meyer<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n