# Image Empire

Source: https://alanwarburton.co.uk/image-empire
Kiwi News: https://news.kiwistand.com/stories/Image-Empire?index=0x69cc39d22d0fee9ec285dc21cf46514853dcda155edba4c0a811a293f5820491fc3816b6
Submitted by misha on 2026-03-31 UTC, 3 upvotes, 3 comments

## Summary

Image Empire: A Field Guide is a free, richly illustrated 23-page download by Alan Warburton, who researched, wrote, animated, soundtracked and voiced it. It connects synthetic images, labour and AI world models, and is based on five years of doctoral research. Voiceovers in Chinese, Hindi and Spanish are available as alternate audio tracks with subtitles, and the guide is designed to be read in a single sitting. It is written for students, young creatives and working professionals, requires no prior knowledge, and covers media literacy, visual culture and worldbuilding.

## Article

Note: Spanish/Chinese/Hindi versions available in-player as alternate audio tracks (+ subtitles)

Film Credits

Researched, written, animated, soundtracked and voiced by Alan Warburton.

Voiceovers: Jenn Leung (Chinese) Anushka Nair (Hindi) Emilio Sosa Estrada (Spanish)

Special thanks to John O’Shea, Keighley Cowood, Harmeet Chagger, David Dinnage and Maya Indira Ganesh.

Free to download, 23 pages, richly illustrated

Connects synthetic images, labour and AI world models

Designed to be read in a single sitting

Based on five years of doctoral research

Written for students, young creatives and working professionals

No prior knowledge required

Suitable for classrooms, studios and workshops

Covers media literacy, visual culture, worldbuilding

Image Empire: A Field Guide

## Comments

**tim**: What avatar would you pick? They‘ve left out what each avatar would do in such world

**rvolz.eth**: You can "play" an NPC? Sounds interesting, but would probably mean to create and maintain an agent …

**tim**: Philosophically there is anyways the question how NPC is less agentic as eg being a Player. Eg it used to be that Thrall, the chief of the orgs in WoW was actually a really cool and looked-up to guy. And that Players would often pose with him. Players wanted to become warriors like him and he had a long history of fought battles. In that view the NPC is even more achieved than Players. No Player in WoW could even become chief of the orcs from what I know.