AI artist at Art Basel Hong Kong is making millions

Botto, an AI artist, exhibited its latest installation at Art Basel Hong Kong this week and its works have now surpassed $6 million in total sales over five years.

German artist Mario Klingemann created Botto in 2021 as an experiment in autonomous, algorithm-driven creativity.

The AI artist used two tracking cameras to observe fair visitors and interpret their facial emotions in real time.

Botto transformed those emotional readings into digital artworks displayed on a large screen.

The AI artist produced 20 final video pieces, each available to collectors for a minimum of $12,000.

Botto generates 350 new digital artworks every week using AI image models such as Stable Diffusion and Kandinsky AI. From there, BottoDAO, an online community of more than 28,000 members, votes each week to select the best piece for auction.

Sotheby’s sold six of Botto’s works in October 2024 for a combined $351,600.

• Juliet La Sala can be reached at jlasala@washingtontimes.com.