hug this cuddly toy, and hear the piercing scream of real AI data centers
Adopt A Data Center takes the form of a plush data center toy
Adopt A Data Center is a satirical project by New York-based creative studio Basura for music artist Big Data. Basura is known for unconventional creative projects including ‘Dirt Shoes.’ The project takes the form of a plush data center toy that plays the high-pitched hum of a real AI data center when hugged, using a familiar object to examine the ways technological progress is presented and experienced.
The project explores the emotional packaging of technological advancements, using satire as a way to encourage closer attention to the facts surrounding data centers. Its accompanying ‘Adoption Site’ collects links to research and reporting on their impact, while Basura interviewed dozens of people living near data centers across the US. The sound used in the toy comes from a resident in Virginia.
Childhood toy look combines with Big Tech’s visual language
Called ‘Bezzy,’ the toy draws on the plush animals sold by organizations such as WWF through initiatives including Adopt-a-Seals and Adopt-A-Pandas. Its design combines the visual language of an 80s childhood toy with that of a corporate mascot. Round eyes, a coy smile, and long, shaggy arms and legs give the data center a softer, more vulnerable appearance.
All 20 toys were handmade. The design avoids a new or highly polished look, instead aiming for the familiarity of an object that has always been around. At the same time, details of its appearance are carefully considered, reflecting the engineered visual language associated with Big Tech.
‘Adopt A Data Center examines the stories we are sold, versus the reality communities experience, as one of the greatest revolutions in human history plays out,’ comments Rajeev Basu, artist and founder of Basura.
The uneasy relationship between people and technology
The project connects the physical presence of data centers with the broader relationship between people and technology. ‘Big Tech encroaches into every area of our lives. We’re rarely totally happy about the benefits, but we’re also powerless. AI data centers are like the physical embodiment of that same feeling,’ explains Alan Wilkis, Big Data.
Created for Big Data, whose music explores the relationship between humans and machines, Adopt A Data Center coincides with the upcoming release of the artist’s new album, 4.0.
Basura created Adopt A Data Center for music artist Big Data
the plush form gives physical shape to an AI data center
project info:
name: Adopt A Data Center
designer: Basura | @basuranewyork
music artist: Big Data
designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. See more project submissions from our readers here.
edited by: Christina Vergopoulou | designboom
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