Our team is taking an active role at the ACM Creativity & Cognition Conference 2026, taking place this week at Central Saint Martins, London, with researchers contributing to workshops, presentations and discussions exploring the global debate about the arts, performance and design and their role in societal transformation.

The conference begins with Principal Research Fellow Alan Chamberlain participating in the 4th Workshop on Explainable AI for the Arts. The workshop brings together researchers and creative practitioners from Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Interaction Design, AI and Digital Arts to examine the growing importance of Explainable AI (XAI) and its role in supporting creative practice.

On Tuesday, Professor Steve Benford and Transitional Assistant Professor Caroline Zheng will present their paper, “A Cabinet of Affective Touches: Building a Design Repository Linking Somatic Experience with Soft Robotic Systems.” The research explores innovative ways of generating tacit design knowledge and creating a repository that supports the design, experience and reflection of affective touch through soft robotic technologies.

Cat Royale will feature on Wednesday during the Tools and Practices for the Performing Arts session. Steve Benford and colleagues will present “Provoking Public Reflection on Robotics and AI through Cat Royale, an Artistic Installation.” The presentation highlights how the installation encourages audiences to reflect on the social and ethical implications of robotics and artificial intelligence through creative engagement.

Completing Somabotics’ contributions to the conference, PhD researcher Marco Amerotti and members of the Traditionable Machines project will present “Charting Creative Journeys through Musical Performance with AI” as part of the Sound and Music Creativity session. The work explores how AI can support and shape musical performance while providing new insights into creative processes.

Through involvement in workshops, artistic installations and research presentations at one of the world’s leading conferences, our team is supporting advancing understanding of human AI interaction, embodied experiences and creative technologies and helping shape conversations about the future of creativity and technology.