This paper combines design, machine learning and social computing to explore generative deep learning as both tool and probe for respiratory care. We first present GANspire, a deep learning tool that generates fine-grained breathing waveforms, which we crafted in collaboration with one respiratory physician, attending to joint materialities of human breathing data and deep generative models. We then relate a probe, produced with breathing waveforms generated with GANspire, and led with a group of ten respiratory care experts, responding to its material attributes. Qualitative annotations showed that respiratory care experts interpreted both realistic and ambiguous attributes of breathing waveforms generated with GANspire, according to subjective aspects of physiology, activity and emotion. Semi-structured interviews also revealed experts' broader perceptions, expectations and ethical concerns on AI technology, based on their clinical practice of respiratory care, and reflexive analysis of GANspire. These findings suggest design implications for technological aids in respiratory care, and show how ambiguity of deep generative models can be leveraged as a resource for qualitative inquiry, enabling socio-material research with generative deep learning. Our paper contributes to the CSCW community by broadening how generative deep learning may be approached not only as a tool to design human-computer interactions, but also as a probe to provoke open conversations with communities of practice about their current and speculative uses of AI technology.

In this paper, we outline a diffractive practice of machine learning (ML) in the frame of material-centered interaction design. To this aim, we review related work in ML, HCI, design, new interfaces for musical expression, and computational art, and introduce two practice-based studies of music performance and robotic art based on interactive machine learning tools, with the hope of revealing the computational materiality of ML, and the potential of embodiment to craft prototypes of ML that reconfigure conceptual or technical approaches to ML. We derive five interference conditions for such art-based ML prototypes—situational whole, small data, shallow model, learnable algorithm, and somaesthetic behaviour—and describe their widening of design and engineering practices of ML prototyping. Finally, we sketch how a process of intra-active machine learning could complement that of interactive machine learning to take materiality as an entry point for ML design within HCI.

Software tools for generating digital sound often present users with high-dimensional, parametric interfaces, that may not facilitate exploration of diverse sound designs. In this article, we propose to investigate artificial agents using deep reinforcement learning to explore parameter spaces in partnership with users for sound design. We describe a series of user-centred studies to probe the creative benefits of these agents and adapting their design to exploration. Preliminary studies observing users’ exploration strategies with parametric interfaces and testing different agent exploration behaviours led to the design of a fully-functioning prototype, called Co-Explorer, that we evaluated in a workshop with professional sound designers. We found that the Co-Explorer enables a novel creative workflow centred on human–machine partnership, which has been positively received by practitioners. We also highlight varied user exploration behaviours throughout partnering with our system. Finally, we frame design guidelines for enabling such co-exploration workflow in creative digital applications.