Still looking for the Truth
Reflections post AI Week Lugano 2025
AI WEEK 2025
A detailed examination of recent events, the procedural and constant innovation through Generative AI tools, movements in the market, and the battle for hegemonic intelligence power between east and west (alas, yet again) leaves us with a query and an answer.
What level of participation are we called upon today? It is not about competitive advantage over tech but the approach to creative processes, with particular attention to the humanities. Understanding where the differences are, where the market lies, and how to provide for the power of encounter.
AI WEEK Lugano was an interesting churn of information and exchange. From creative workflows, technical and ethical arguments, passing through the health sector, to tech, business, and legal arguments, all corners were looked upon and scrutinized. There was a lively buzz at the Asilo Ciani in Lugano.
Built in 1892, the building was established as a "charitable nursery school," founded by the philanthropist Filippo Ciani to educate children in need. Places have a sense of function rooted in their architectural genesis. Indeed, perhaps the feeling is that we are in the infancy of a cry for personal responsibility that only comes through the power of maturity and self-reflection.
Relentless self-documentation is one of the key arguments made by Mimento's creator, Fernando Cwilich Gil. Perched upon the empowering act of regaining personal social media information (and emails and communication chats) to then be organized and set to provide a groundwork for personal and collective literary works, the Mimento Project seeks a similar depth of human–machine reflection, offering safe harbor to the hopeful remnants of our collective digital past and transforming them into enduring literature. Cwilich's original manifesto speaks to our times.
Similarly, Manuela Bernasconi's presentation of her work with Flowa Training and gathering information on Body Prompting Unpredictability, opening earlier in 2025, provided a fascinating and poetic moment. Accompanied by virtuoso freestyle dancer Andrea Santamato, we had the pleasure of being taken from the screen of philosophical arguments and the mirror of our machines back to our bodies.
2025 has been a fascinating and hard-worked year for us at the Generative Center. The feeling of rapid and constant change suggests one needs to keep pace with novelty. However, this requires a constant appreciation of certain differences: novelty vs. renewal, important vs. essential. Renewal requires a connection with our origins, our past, our understanding, our deep inner self. What is essential is also sometimes swept to the dusty corners of our daily lives, yielding inevitably to the immediacy of practical purposes imposed upon important issues. Very easily we forget that artistic vision and thrust is first and foremost a result of a need. Of course, we can come to the conclusion that economic issues are the main argument, but it is fleeting as our lives when dealt upon by a simple equation of quantity.
Quality in production is difficult today to endure. We look upon institutions to sustain our processes, but there is little availability in the manner of research needed to provide lasting solutions. We confuse traditional production pipelines as security in investment, neglecting the very clear fact that the times have shifted to change.
"Everything is changing" was one of the most repeated phrases during AI WEEK Lugano. But what does this really mean? If not specified, it is analogous to the famous misunderstood quote attributed to Einstein: "everything is relative." Relative to what? And in this line of thought, if everything changes, then nothing really ever does. Most power and institutional structures are understandably calling for a little time-out, lengthening as much as possible the process of transformation that we are being thrown into. From the way we are dealing with education, the experience of art (in all its forms), social relationships—and our relationship to Nature—we are somehow being awakened from several decades of digital dreams.
AI is not happening in a void; it is the consequence of an extraordinary progression of events. Social media has funnelled our attention and harvested our desires into capital flows. Little screens hold our chain of thought. Attention span is reduced to a few minutes (at most), and nobody really wants to tell stories anymore. Indeed, short ten-episode, one-minute series is a format to be taken quite seriously if one wishes to be a part of the flow.
But the equation of our complex times, contrasted and in upheaval, compressed into a feeling of loss, contains magic numbers. The command of our human understanding, living beyond a structural argument, benefits from the power of mystery. We can share our moment, presently. We can laugh and tell each other stories and transform them according to a new narrative in the making. This, and nothing less, is what is at stake: to keep telling the story of life.
What level of participation are we called upon today? It is not about competitive advantage over tech but the approach to creative processes, with particular attention to the humanities. Understanding where the differences are, where the market lies, and how to provide for the power of encounter.
AI WEEK Lugano was an interesting churn of information and exchange. From creative workflows, technical and ethical arguments, passing through the health sector, to tech, business, and legal arguments, all corners were looked upon and scrutinized. There was a lively buzz at the Asilo Ciani in Lugano.
Built in 1892, the building was established as a "charitable nursery school," founded by the philanthropist Filippo Ciani to educate children in need. Places have a sense of function rooted in their architectural genesis. Indeed, perhaps the feeling is that we are in the infancy of a cry for personal responsibility that only comes through the power of maturity and self-reflection.
Relentless self-documentation is one of the key arguments made by Mimento's creator, Fernando Cwilich Gil. Perched upon the empowering act of regaining personal social media information (and emails and communication chats) to then be organized and set to provide a groundwork for personal and collective literary works, the Mimento Project seeks a similar depth of human–machine reflection, offering safe harbor to the hopeful remnants of our collective digital past and transforming them into enduring literature. Cwilich's original manifesto speaks to our times.
Similarly, Manuela Bernasconi's presentation of her work with Flowa Training and gathering information on Body Prompting Unpredictability, opening earlier in 2025, provided a fascinating and poetic moment. Accompanied by virtuoso freestyle dancer Andrea Santamato, we had the pleasure of being taken from the screen of philosophical arguments and the mirror of our machines back to our bodies.
2025 has been a fascinating and hard-worked year for us at the Generative Center. The feeling of rapid and constant change suggests one needs to keep pace with novelty. However, this requires a constant appreciation of certain differences: novelty vs. renewal, important vs. essential. Renewal requires a connection with our origins, our past, our understanding, our deep inner self. What is essential is also sometimes swept to the dusty corners of our daily lives, yielding inevitably to the immediacy of practical purposes imposed upon important issues. Very easily we forget that artistic vision and thrust is first and foremost a result of a need. Of course, we can come to the conclusion that economic issues are the main argument, but it is fleeting as our lives when dealt upon by a simple equation of quantity.
Quality in production is difficult today to endure. We look upon institutions to sustain our processes, but there is little availability in the manner of research needed to provide lasting solutions. We confuse traditional production pipelines as security in investment, neglecting the very clear fact that the times have shifted to change.
"Everything is changing" was one of the most repeated phrases during AI WEEK Lugano. But what does this really mean? If not specified, it is analogous to the famous misunderstood quote attributed to Einstein: "everything is relative." Relative to what? And in this line of thought, if everything changes, then nothing really ever does. Most power and institutional structures are understandably calling for a little time-out, lengthening as much as possible the process of transformation that we are being thrown into. From the way we are dealing with education, the experience of art (in all its forms), social relationships—and our relationship to Nature—we are somehow being awakened from several decades of digital dreams.
AI is not happening in a void; it is the consequence of an extraordinary progression of events. Social media has funnelled our attention and harvested our desires into capital flows. Little screens hold our chain of thought. Attention span is reduced to a few minutes (at most), and nobody really wants to tell stories anymore. Indeed, short ten-episode, one-minute series is a format to be taken quite seriously if one wishes to be a part of the flow.
But the equation of our complex times, contrasted and in upheaval, compressed into a feeling of loss, contains magic numbers. The command of our human understanding, living beyond a structural argument, benefits from the power of mystery. We can share our moment, presently. We can laugh and tell each other stories and transform them according to a new narrative in the making. This, and nothing less, is what is at stake: to keep telling the story of life.
EXPERIENCE & VISION
December 19:00 - 12:30
Introduction
After the initial global impact of Artificial Intelligence, we are now called to engage with it on a deeper level of awareness. This technology is becoming an integral part of our lives and will, in all likelihood, play a decisive role in the evolution of humankind. We perceive it as a true anthropological revolution. In this context, creativity and emotional awareness become fundamental tools for facing the challenges of the present. Through the sharing of information, experiences from recent years, and visions for the future, Experience & Vision goes beyond mere content creation or storytelling. It aims to explore in depth the processes that transform ourselves and the world around us.
Program in detail
After the initial global impact of Artificial Intelligence, we are now called to engage with it on a deeper level of awareness. This technology is becoming an integral part of our lives and will, in all likelihood, play a decisive role in the evolution of humankind. We perceive it as a true anthropological revolution. In this context, creativity and emotional awareness become fundamental tools for facing the challenges of the present. Through the sharing of information, experiences from recent years, and visions for the future, Experience & Vision goes beyond mere content creation or storytelling. It aims to explore in depth the processes that transform ourselves and the world around us.
Program in detail
Opening
Collective Prompting: “A Song of the Moment”
A creative exercise to immediately enter the generative atmosphere of the seminar and experience AI as an expressive tool.
1. Who We Are
Presentation of the Generative Center: mission and approach.
Why we decided to engage full-time with AI — creative opportunities, transformations in languages, and the necessity of radical exploration.
Our creative flow: how we’ve structured an original process that integrates experimentation and production, focusing on audiovisuals while remaining open to other fields (design, communication, music).
The context in which we operate: connections with institutions, professional and cultural realities.
2. Introduction to Generative AI
A brief history of the technology: from early neural networks to current multimodal models.
How it works: training models, datasets, transformers, image, text, sound, and video generation.
Current landscape: main available models and their differences (open source, closed source, open weights).
Creative possibilities: screenwriting, animation, editing, sound design, rapid prototyping.
3. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Overview of the latest AI Week: trends, new technologies, and critical reflections.
The development of generative AI in the audiovisual field: an ongoing technological and anthropological revolution.
Our direct experience — concrete projects as case studies:
- Openings (RSI/CISA Workshop): AI as a space for learning and experimentation.
- The Wolf: workflow, relationship with communities, transmission, institutional relations, production arguments, hybrid production values.
- Escape from Kabul: the process rules, technical complexity of maintaining a coherent style; animation introduced at a late stage, not initially planned.
- Advertising and clips for the City of Lugano: opportunities and limitations in the commercial world.
- AI in other artistic works, films & publicity.
- POV of international authors – clips – Advantages, contradictions, and risks: when AI accelerates processes and when it complicates them.
The future of creative workflows: from writing to AI-integrated audiovisual production.
Open source, open weights, and computational power: democratization and accessibility.
Ongoing projects: APERTUS and ALPS. i-e- MIMENTO – introduction to Small Language Models.
Exploration of 3D worlds and immersive realities.
Film industries in transformation: Netflix and major studios beginning to accept AI animations, opening new production perspectives.
BREAK
Guest Contributions & Q&A Session
The session includes contributions from three guests offering practical and interdisciplinary perspectives.
Each speaker will hold a 10-minute presentation, followed by a Q&A session:
- Markus Schnabel — Open-source AI workflows in mobility product design
- Manuela Bernasconi — Body prompting and the relationship between body, gesture, and generation
- Gionata Zanetta — Creative processes and music production with AI
5. Ecology and Legal Aspects
Environmental impact: energy consumption, model sustainability, possible alternatives.
Legal and ethical issues: copyright, authorship, transparency, and responsibility.
The sharing dilemma: datasets, models, licenses, and usage limitations.
6. Exchange with the Audience
Open Q&A session. A space for discussion, sharing experiences, questions, and reflections from participants.
Closing
Collective Prompting: “A Song of the Moment”
A final experiment to conclude together — transforming the entire experience into a shared creative act.
GC
In an ever-accelerating technological landscape, where complex creative processes are compressed from days into seconds, a paradigm shift is emerging that redefines our relationship with art and storytelling.
To face this transformation, our goal is to create interdisciplinary and collaborative spaces — true creative laboratories where narrative, relationships, and associative environments intertwine.
MIMENTODecember 5
18:30
18:30
The Generative Center presents its first inquiry, research, and implementation in the practical transition toward Small Language Models with Mimento: Your Story. Your Life. Your Book.—an introductory presentation outlining the project’s scope for the first semester of 2026.
The event will take place at the Generative Center, Besso 42a, 6900 Lugano, on Friday, December 5 at 18:30.
Mimento explores how everyday digital traces, messages, posts, or reflections. can be reassembled into coherent personal narratives. Each person’s online presence holds a distinct rhythm, tone, and emotional structure; Mimento functions as a writing instrument designed to help recover and reinterpret these elements into meaningful literary forms.
Developed by Argentine-born artist Fernando Cwilich Gil (Pepo), the project continues his collaboration with Generative Center co-founders Felix A. Bachmann and Kevin Merz, following joint initiatives such as ALGO (2015–2020), healing museum, and MONA (2018–2020). These works combined art, technology, and therapeutic practice across various international contexts. As part of AI Week 2025, Mimento introduces a first series of experimental Mimento Books, created in collaboration with participants. The project offers a reflective approach to human–machine co-authorship and the transformation of personal memory into artistic expression.