There’s a lot of fun to be had at “Dream Garden,” the brand new exhibit at the Tech Interactive in downtown San Jose. You may wind up having such a good time that you’ll forget that the immersive experience is largely driven by artificial intelligence, which is either the best or worst thing that’s ever happened to us — depending on who you talk to and what day of the week it is.
“Dream Garden,” the centerpiece of the cool new AI Sandbox gallery that opened to the public Saturday, uses AI to open up a colorful world of possibilities. In the 1,200-square foot room, your body movements — even your facial expressions — can change the environment around you. Flap your arms and make a digital bird fly across the wall; stretch out your hands and watch a “tree” sprout new branches. Open wide and watch a “snake plant” mimic your gaping maw (and maybe catch a few errant butterflies with its tongue).
Katrina Stevens, the president and CEO of The Tech, plays with a new interactive AI exhibit at the Tech Interactive in San Jose, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
You can also stand near another wall and watch a luminescent waterfall cascade around your shape or watch as one of the AI tools uses data it senses from you to craft a haiku.
“Dream Garden represents a significant milestone in making AI accessible and engaging for everyone,” Tech CEO Katrina Stevens said. “We are proud to share this stunning exhibit, where visitors can explore the intersection of art, play, and innovation, discovering how their creativity interacts with and shapes this transformative technology.”
Kyle McDonald, an independent artist who with collaborated with media artist Daito Manabe on “Tranformirror” demonstrates how their art works at the Tech Interactive, in San Jose, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
“Dream Garden” was the work of Petaluma-based creative studio Design I/O, the same group that made the endlessly fascinating Connections Wall in the Tech’s “Solve for Earth” exhibit on the lower level. It uses four in-wall cameras, 10 depth sensors, seven projectors and five computers to create its world. Design I/O co-founder Theo Watson said the exhibit uses Google’s MediaPipe for dynamic gesture recognition to change from an immersive room to an interactive place where people can do their own thing or work together to transform the world around them.
“The integration of AI in Dream Garden redefines what an interactive exhibit can be,” Watson said.
“Dream Garden” is on the upper level of the downtown learning center at 201 S. Market St., as part of the AI Sandbox — a rotating showcase of different AI applications, including fascinating art installations like “Tranformirror.” Get more details at www.thetech.org.
GOOD SPORT: San Jose Sports Authority CEO John Poch says he was genuinely surprised when the San Jose Chamber of Commerce honored him with its inaugural Legacy Leadership Award at the San Jose Marriott on Jan. 30.
Of course, he really shouldn’t have been — especially if the former coach and San Jose State sports executive took a look at the Sports Authority’s stats: Generating more than $200 million in economic impact from events like the college football championship and U.S. championship events for gymnastics and figure skating; securing $550 million for after-school programs and awarding more than $375,000 in youth scholarships.
He didn’t take much of a victory lap, either: Just two days later, he was in the kitchen cooking for the 11th annual Capt. Matthew Patrick Manoukian Memorial Crab Feed at St. Francis High School. The event supports an endowed scholarship in memory of Manoukian, a St. Francis grad and U.S. Marine who was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2012.
PUBLIC RELATIONS SCOOP: Madison Nguyen, who came up short in her bid in November for a seat on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors, will be putting her communications skills to use in a new way after taking a position with PRxDigital, the San Jose-based public relations firm.
Nguyen, who served as the first Vietnamese woman on the San Jose City Council, previously had stints as executive director of the nonprofit Hunger at Home and as a VP for the San Jose Chamber of Commerce when it was known as the Silicon Valley Organization.
“Madison’s talents in leveraging business interests to benefit the whole community are unmatched, and we are elated to have her on our team,” PRxDigital founder and CEO Brenna Bolger said.
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PUNCTUATED HOLIDAY: A few years ago, I mused about the proper punctuation in Presidents Day, the holiday we’re observing Monday. As I discovered, most sources use President’s Day, others Presidents’ Day and some (like me) Presidents Day. I wondered if anything had changed on that front and figured I could be very modern and consult AI on the issue. I asked ChatGPT where the apostrophe should go — if anywhere — and the program basically confirmed my previous findings.
“Presidents Day (without the apostrophe) is also quite common, though it’s less formally used than President’s Day or Presidents’ Day,” the AI told me. “This version is typically used in more casual or contemporary contexts and reflects the broader, collective honoring of U.S. presidents, without emphasizing a single president.”
Bottom line: If you’ve got Monday off, enjoy it and don’t worry about the grammar.
