Spiritual Stokhastik
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Master in Media Design · HEAD Geneva Nicolas Grosfort · Supervised by Sabrina Calvo July - November 2026 · Geneva & Kyoto
Summary
Spiritual Stokhastik is a research project that explores how the interface metaphors of autonomous AI agents - grounded in an anthropomorphic conversational model and characterised by multiple forms of opacity - shape the sociotechnical imaginaries that underpin our relationship with them and, more broadly, influence our way of being in the world.
Rather than treating the opacity of these systems as a problem to be solved, the research proposes to make it the starting point for an exploration of ways of relating that may emerge from the invisible.
Drawing on an animist ontology, the project takes the torii - gateway to Shinto shrines - as a lens through which to explore other ways of relating to phenomena that are neither fully accessible, nor entirely explicable, visible, or controllable.
Conducted between Geneva and Kyoto from July to November 2026, this research investigates what it means to relate to an alterity - whether technological or otherwise - by moving away from the paradigm of immediacy to explore other forms of coexistence, grounded in attention, empathy, and wonder rather than control and efficiency.
Research Question
In what ways do the interface metaphors of autonomous AI agents shape our way of being in the world - and to what extent could an animist ontology help us imagine other ways of relating?
Sub-questions
- How do the interface metaphors of autonomous AI agents shape the ways we relate to them?
- In what ways could an animist ontology allow us to rethink our relationship with autonomous AI agents?
- How does the torii mediate our relationship with alterity?
Methodology
This research takes an exploratory approach, in which field observations, interviews, and design practice serve less to validate hypotheses than to generate new ways of framing questions.
It combines four complementary approaches:
- Reflexive practice: an auto-ethnographic journal documenting daily interactions with an autonomous AI agent (Hermès).
- Situated immersion: attentive wandering through shrines, temples, and their surroundings.
- Field observation: documentation of the torii and relational mapping of the forms of mediation it organizes.
- Design approach: exploration of alternative interface metaphors.
Posture
This research adopts a reflexive stance, acknowledging the risks of projection, instrumentalisation, and cultural appropriation that accompany any attempt to transpose ontological frameworks from one cultural context to another.
Interviews
| People | Location | Topics |
|---|---|---|
| TBD | Kyoto | Animist philosophy and ontology |
| TBD | Kyoto | Japanese history and Shinto |
| Gergely Péter Barna | Kyoto | Machines, craftsmanship, and tradition |
| Ryo Terui | Kyoto | Actantiality and human–nonhuman relationships |
| TBD | Geneva / Kyoto | Experiences of using AI agents |
| Douglas Edric Stanley | Geneva | Human–AI agent relationships |
| Virginia Bjertnes | Geneva | Storytelling, narrative, and animist ontology |
| Alexa Steinbrück | Germany (remote) | Artificial intelligence |
| Anne Alombert | France (remote) | Stochastic parrots and cognitive delegation |
| André Ourednik | Lausanne (remote) | Spiritual machines and oracles |
| Matteo Loglio | Ticino (remote) | AI agents and the Mur Mur project |
Field sites in Kyoto
Ginkaku-ji · Kōdai-ji · Shinjuan · mui LAB · Calm Tech Institute · Kyoto Design Lab
Timeline
● Primary activity · ◐ Secondary activity
| Month | Reading | Writing | Interviews | Reflexive practice | Situated immersion | Field observation | Design exploration | Outputs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June | ● | ◐ | ◐ | Research proposal, Hermès setup | ||||
| July | ● | ◐ | ● | ● | ● | ● | Research platform (v1) | |
| August | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● | Research platform (v2) |
| September | ◐ | ● | ◐ | ● | ◐ | ◐ | ● | Interim presentation (Kyoto), Draft thesis (30k) |
| October | ● | ◐ | ● | Interim presentation (Geneva) | ||||
| November | ● | ◐ | Final presentation (Geneva), Final thesis (50k) |
Output
The research will primarily take the form of an experimental web platform providing access to observations, interviews, and the research journal, while exploring other ways of interacting with an AI agent. It will be accompanied by a written thesis (approximately 50,000 characters).
Practical Project
Following this research, between December 2026 and June 2027, a series of physical interface prototypes - inspired by Large Language Objects and Calm Technology - will explore other ways of relating to AI agents, interrogating their status, form, and personality, while inviting reflection on how we might relate differently to the other.
References
A selection of the most relevant references.
| Reference | Author | Domain | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cultures du design numérique | Nolwenn Maudet | Interface Design | Book |
| De la bêtise artificielle | Anne Alombert | Philosophy of Technology | Book |
| Le désert de nous-même | Éric Sadin | Symbolic impoverishment | Book |
| Kojiki | Hieda no Are & Ō no Yasumaro | Japanese mythology | Book |
| Ways of Being | James Bridle | Artificial Intelligence | Book |
| Zeros and Ones | Sadie Plant | Cyberfeminism | Book |
| A(I)nimism | Diana Mykhaylychenko & al. | LLO | Project |
| Mur Mur | OIO Studio | LLO | Project |
| Plaything (Black Mirror) | Charlie Brooker | Agency | Film |
| My Neighbor Totoro | Hayao Miyazaki | Alterity | Film |
| Animistic Design - How to Reimagine Digital Interaction between the Human and the Nonhuman | Betti Marenko & Philip van Allen | Animist design | Article |
| The Cybernetic Hypothesis | Tiqqun | Cybernetics | Article |
Keywords
Animist ontology · Relational ontology · Autonomous AI agents · Interface metaphors · Opacity · Alterity · Sociotechnical imaginaries · Torii · Liminal space · Care ethics · Speculative design · Auto-ethnography · Situated inquiry · Mediation · Interface design · Shinto · Calm technology · Techno-animism