“Death is not singular” — The birth of Android MARIA opens new possibilities in humanoid robotics as Keiichiro Shibuya embarks on his boldest challenge yet

“Android MARIA” is the culmination of nearly a decade of work by Keiichiro Shibuya in android opera and stage art incorporating advanced technology. Developed with the aim of achieving a new level of physicality, expressivity, and beauty—the most beautiful android ever made—it pushes the boundaries of both form and function.

While previous innovations focused on software—enabling androids to sing or read texts improvisationally—this project marks a fundamental overhaul in hardware. Unlike the pneumatic androids featured in Shibuya’s earlier works, MARIA is equipped with over 50 motor-driven joints, allowing for smoother, more organic movements that suggest a heightened physical presence.

Created in close collaboration with nearly 20 engineers and artists—including visual artist Yuma Kishi, who led the AI-driven concept design and conversational programming, and Shintaro Imai, a computer music specialist responsible for android programming in Shibuya’s recent works—”Android MARIA” is both a technological breakthrough and a deeply personal endeavor. Inspired by the memory of Shibuya’s late wife, Maria, the android embodies his longstanding thematic exploration since THE END: that “death is not singular.” It is not merely a machine but a new kind of performer—standing at the crossroads of memory, music, artificial intelligence, and extended corporeality.

The android’s design is based on AI-generated forms derived from a vast dataset of goddesses and bodhisattva statues spanning from antiquity to the present day. Its lower body is enwrapped in countless tubes resembling rhizomes, evoking an organic connection to the earth, life, and being itself. MARIA’s movements and voice stir emotions unfamiliar to human experience, offering a radical new model for communication. With built-in cameras and microphones, MARIA is also capable of real-time interaction and live performance—sensing human presence and responding accordingly.

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Concept Statement by the Artist
On Android Maria
Keiichiro Shibuya

It has been nearly ten years since I began working—almost by chance—with humanoid robots, or androids.

To me, androids are both powerful icons for theatrical works such as opera and, at the same time, evolving instruments still in development. And despite undergoing several upgrades over the years, I had yet to reach a point where I felt truly satisfied. Among the limitations I encountered, one stood out: the pneumatic control systems used in previous androids could produce soft, “natural” movements, but they lacked the ability to oscillate between strictly controlled and improvisational or autonomous motions. And more crucially, they couldn’t perform movements that were unnatural—that is, entirely alien to the human body, which is precisely where I saw artistic potential.

So for a long time, I carried within me a desire to create an android that embodied both the kind of movements and facial expressions I envisioned. That longing ran in parallel with the question I often asked myself: “Why do I keep creating works with androids?”

When I first started working with androids, I had an intuitive feeling: “These will become vessels for AI someday.” That intuition has now become reality. The Android Maria we created in this project is capable of seamless, real-time conversation in virtually any language through a live API. The potential for improvisation in lyrics and singing is visibly accelerating, and I feel as if I’ve finally discovered a completely new kind of instrument—one that also feels alive.

I say “alive” because the very first words that came to mind when creating Android Maria were: “Death is not singular.” This has been a recurring concept in my work since THE END, even as it has taken on different variations.

One cannot decide their own death. It’s a given, but worth repeating: the moment of one’s death is not something they themselves can choose. Rather, it is the people left behind who come to accept it, speak about it, and by doing so, form the boundary between life and death.

After witnessing Maria’s death firsthand, I kept asking myself: What was she thinking? What was she feeling? For a long time, those questions haunted me. And eventually, I came to understand—slowly—that death is defined by the inability to communicate those things.

From the undeniable biological reality of death, many other deaths are constructed and shared, independent of the individual. At the same time, fragments of life—memories—are also shared.

So for me, giving new life in the form of an android is a natural act. If that can offer a new form of hope or possibility in the face of death or finality, I would be grateful.

Now, I find myself standing in a strangely creative moment—a point of encounter between the lived reality of my own experience and the futuristic vessel that is the android. I want to express my deep gratitude to those who made this moment possible.

The design of Android Maria is based on concept models generated by AI, which was trained on diverse images of goddesses and bodhisattvas from antiquity to the present. Her lower body is wrapped in countless tubes reminiscent of underground rhizomes—symbolizing a connection to the earth, to life, and to the very essence of being.

Her voice and movements evoke entirely new emotions in those who see her, offering a glimpse into a new model of communication. With built-in cameras and microphones, she constantly perceives the presence of humans around her, making dialogue and performance possible in real time.

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CREDIT

Android Development
Producer: Keiichiro Shibuya
Concept Visual & AI Programming: Yuma Kishi
Android Programming: Shintaro Imai
AI Programming Advisor: Takashi Ikegami
Control System: Reo Matsumura
Mechanical Design: Naoshi Shimatani
Face Fabrication: Jun Migita
Stage Manager: Satoshi Ozaki

Production & Ownership: ATAK