On October 10, a research team from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) was awarded the Honorary Mention in the Digital Humanity category at the Prix Ars Electronica 2025, the world’s most prestigious media art festival, for their project AI Nüshu (女书), which reinterprets Nüshu (the world’s only women’s script) through artificial intelligence.
 
'Nüshu (女書)' is the world's only women's script, a unique writing system created autonomously by women in Hunan Province, China, starting around the 19th century. These women, excluded from Hanzi education, used it to record their lives and communicate with each other.  

The project AI Nüshu, jointly conducted by Professor Chang-Hee Lee’s research team from the Department of Industrial Design at KAIST and Ali Asadipour, Director of the Computer Science Research Center at the Royal College of Art (RCA), drew significant attention by combining the cultural meanings of Nüshu—creativity under oppression, female solidarity, and linguistic experimentation—with contemporary technology.

The KAIST research team and collaborators combined this script with Computational Linguistics to create an installation that visitors can directly experience.
 
The artificial intelligence within the artwork learns the communication methods of pre-modern Chinese women and generates its own new language. This is regarded as a symbol of resistance against the patriarchal order and a feminist endeavor that moves beyond Western-centric views on language. 

It also received high praise for artistically presenting the possibility of machines creating new languages, going beyond the preconception that 'only humans create language.'

Dr. Yuqian Sun of the Royal College of Art expressed her feelings, saying, "Although there were many difficulties in my life and research process, I feel great reward and emotion through this award."
 
Professor Chang-Hee Lee of the KAIST Department of Industrial Design stated, "It is very meaningful that this contemplative art, born from the intersection of history, humanities, art, and technology, has led to such a globally prestigious award."
 
The 'Prix Ars Electronica,' known as the 'Academy Award of the media art world,' is the premier international media art competition held annually in Linz, Austria. This competition, which discovers innovative works spanning the boundaries of art and science, saw 3,987 submissions from 98 countries this year, with only two works receiving the honor in the Digital Humanity category. 

Detailed information about the project can be found on the official Prix Ars Electronica website (https://ars.electronica.art/prix/en/digitalhumanity/).

References

• 카이스트 보도자료 (KAIST Press Release)
• 프리 아르스 일렉트로니카 2025 (Prix Ars Electronica 2025)