PhD Oral Exam - Chrys Vilvang, Communication Studies

When studying for a doctoral degree (PhD), candidates submit a thesis that provides a critical review of the current state of knowledge of the thesis subject as well as the student’s own contributions to the subject. The distinguishing criterion of doctoral graduate research is a significant and original contribution to knowledge.

Once accepted, the candidate presents the thesis orally. This oral exam is open to the public.

Abstract

The Apple Photos app has been using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to scan and curate photographs since 2016, actively shaping how over 1 billion users interact with their personal photo libraries and come to remember their pasts. This dissertation examines the Photos app and its embedded Memories feature as a case study for assessing the impact of AI on the cultural practices surrounding photography and memory. Through a written thesis and two creative projects, this multidisciplinary inquiry employs methods of critical discourse analysis, research-creation, and semi-structured interviews to consider the stakes of filtering personal memories through the uniform lens of proprietary, one-size-fits-all technologies.

Analysis of Apple’s promotional material reveals how the cultural value of Memories is in paradoxical conflict with the affective labour it threatens to supplant. Examination of public reaction to Apple’s decision to omit Holocaust photographs from Memories uncovers the implicit values embedded in the automated curation of the past. Interviews with everyday iPhone users question the efficacy of standardised AI models for curating personal content and elucidate the nuances of context and meaning. Themes from these findings are expanded through two research-creation projects: Graceland (2023) animates the consequential deletion at the core of AI curation and The Lazy River (2025) showcases the inflexibility of static data to reflect dynamic shifts in perception. Collectively, this project critiques the emergence of AI in the Photos app as a consequential development in the history of photography and memory wherein culture is recast through the totalising data-driven logic of Big Tech.