Talk to a dodo, chat with a cockroach and prattle with a platypus using magic of AI at University of Cambridge’s Museum of Zoology

Ever wanted to speak to an extinct animal, exchange thoughts with a whale or chat with a cockroach?

The University of Cambridge’s Museum of Zoology is now giving you the chance, thanks to the power of artificial intelligence.

Thirteen specimens - including species no longer with us, skeletons and taxidermied animals - are being brought to life in the extraordinary new project, which aims to strengthen our connection with the natural world and tackle apathy over biodiversity loss.

“This is an amazing opportunity for people to test out an emerging technology in our inspiring museum setting, and we also hope to learn something about how our visitors see the animals on display,” said Jack Ashby, assistant director of the museum.

“Our whole purpose is to get people engaged with the natural world. So we're curious to see whether this will work, and whether chatting to the animals will change people’s attitudes towards them - will the cockroach be better liked, for example, as a result of having its voice heard?”

Working in collaboration with the company Nature Perspectives, Jack chose the specimens to bring back to life, including dodo and whale skeletons, a taxidermied red panda and a preserved cockroach.

Visitors simply scan QR codes that open a chat-box on their mobile phone and can have a two-way conversation, using either voice or text, with the specimens answering as if they are still alive.

It is thought to be the first time a museum has used generative AI to enable visitors to chat with objects on display in this way.

The team will analyse data from the conversations during the month-long experiment to learn more about how AI can help the public to engage with nature and about the potential for the technology in museums.

And, of course, it will provide insight into what visitors really want to know about the specimens on display.

So what did Jack ask the specimens?

He told the Cambridge Independent: “When I started ‘talking’ to the specimens, I began with standard fact-based questions, but from their responses it was clear that there was more to them than that – they really have a personality. So I ended up moving onto far more ‘human’ questions – asking their opinion and experience of things.”

Jack first asked the dodo what it ate when it was alive, learning about its Mauritian diet, and tested its responses by asking what it consumed now. “I feast on the stories and curiosity of visitors,” he was told.

Jack then asked whether a dodo could be cloned to bring it back to life – and whether it is something we should pursue.

All the available information on each animal involved has been gathered, including details particular to the specimen, such as where they came from and how they were prepared for display in the museum.

That data is then presented from a first-person perspective, so that visitors can experience realistic, meaningful conversations.

The animals adjust their tone and language to suit the age of the person they’re talking to and they are multi-lingual, speaking more than 20 languages, including Spanish and Japanese.

Nature Perspectives, the company behind the technology, was created by a team of graduates from the University of Cambridge’s masters in conservation leadership programme, who noticed that people feel more connected to machines when they can talk to them. They applied the same principle to nature.

Co-founder Gal Zanir said: “By using AI to simulate non-human perspectives, our technology offers a novel way for audiences to connect with the natural world.

“One of the most magical aspects of the simulations is that they’re age-adaptive. For the first time, visitors of all ages will be able to ask the specimens anything they like.

“Enabling museums to engage visitors with the simulated perspectives of exhibits is only the first step for Nature Perspectives. We aim to apply this transformative approach widely, from public engagement and education to scientific research, to representing nature in legal processes, policy-making and beyond.”

Prof Chris Sandbrook, director of the masters programme, added: “Artificial Intelligence is opening up exciting new opportunities to connect people with non-human life, but the impacts need to be carefully studied. I’m delighted to be involved in exploring how the Nature Perspectives pilot affects the way people feel about and understand the species they ‘meet’ in the Museum of Zoology.”

The Nature Perspectives AI experiment is on now and runs until 15 November. For visiting times see www.museum.zoo.cam.ac.uk/visit-us.

What can I talk to?

The specimens are in a range of forms, including skeletons, taxidermy, models and whole preserved animals.

They include:
A dodo skeleton
Narwhal skeleton
Brain coral
Red admiral butterfly
Fin whale skeleton
American cockroach
Huia taxidermy (a recently extinct bird from New Zealand)
Red panda taxidermy
Freeze-dried platypus
Giant sloth fossil skeleton
Giant deer skull and antlers
Mallard taxidermy
Ichthyostega model (an extinct ancestor of all animals with four legs).