Biography
Dr. Boyd M. Branch is a theatre technologist, artist and researcher. He is a co-director of the AI Theatre Lab Improbotics, and co-founder of Improbotics Kids!. He works across disciplines with scientists, engineers, and artists to develop novel technology, experiences, and pedagogies aimed at fostering adaptive radical social change through play. He publishes regularly in the field of human-computer interactions on the subjects of live performance with LLMs, performing in virtual and augmented reality, and training with XR tools. As a live-arts creative who works with technology, he has extensive experience designing and building digital media systems for theatre companies and institutions around the world including the Venice Biennale (Cuspidi, 2023), New Ohio Theatre in NYC (NY Times Critic’s Pick), and academic institutions including the New York Academy of Science and Yale School of Medicine. He holds a PhD in Digital Arts from the University of Kent, an MFA in Interdisciplinary Digital Media & Performance from Arizona State University, and an MA in Theatre studies from the University of Utrecht. He is Associate Professor of Digital Technologies at the University of Southampton’s Winchester School of Art.