Abstract
Design practice frequently characterises generative artificial intelligence (AI) as a compliant, tool-like extension of human intention; however, recent reports of atypical behaviours motivate a re- examination of this metaphor. Grounded in Object-Oriented Ontology, agential realism, and posthumanist theory, this paper introduces the Tensional-Field Relational Framework (TFRF) for human–AI co-creation. TFRF models collaboration as a flat network comprising five semi-opaque node classes: human designer, AI system, creative artefact, intentional vector, and socio technical environment, all linked by dynamically weighted edges and circulating flows. We operational ise this perspective as a diagnostic governance grammar: relations are instrumented as edges with quantified flows (data movement, permission transitions, reward cadence, temporal dynamics) and governed at Obligatory Passage Points (OPPs). A trace-based procedure reconstructs translation chains (prompts → platform mediation → model settings → versioned artefacts), thereby rendering “orphaned edges” and “uncontrolled flows” auditable and locating concrete controls (provenance, consent, and variability) at specific OPPs. The contribution is a reproducible lens that advances beyond conceptual assembly toward actionable diagnostics for risk identification and responsibility allocation in contemporary co-creation.
Keywords
Generative AI; Co-creation; Relational ontology; Human–AI collaboration; Object-Oriented
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.804
Citation
Wang, Z., Zeng, J., Gera, K.,and Hall, A.(2025) Beyond Obedient Tools: A Tensional-Field Relational Ontology for Human-AI Co-creation, in Chang, C.-Y., and Hsu, Y. (eds.), IASDR 2025: Design Next, 02-05 December, Taiwan. https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.804
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Track 6 - Co-creation
Beyond Obedient Tools: A Tensional-Field Relational Ontology for Human-AI Co-creation
Design practice frequently characterises generative artificial intelligence (AI) as a compliant, tool-like extension of human intention; however, recent reports of atypical behaviours motivate a re- examination of this metaphor. Grounded in Object-Oriented Ontology, agential realism, and posthumanist theory, this paper introduces the Tensional-Field Relational Framework (TFRF) for human–AI co-creation. TFRF models collaboration as a flat network comprising five semi-opaque node classes: human designer, AI system, creative artefact, intentional vector, and socio technical environment, all linked by dynamically weighted edges and circulating flows. We operational ise this perspective as a diagnostic governance grammar: relations are instrumented as edges with quantified flows (data movement, permission transitions, reward cadence, temporal dynamics) and governed at Obligatory Passage Points (OPPs). A trace-based procedure reconstructs translation chains (prompts → platform mediation → model settings → versioned artefacts), thereby rendering “orphaned edges” and “uncontrolled flows” auditable and locating concrete controls (provenance, consent, and variability) at specific OPPs. The contribution is a reproducible lens that advances beyond conceptual assembly toward actionable diagnostics for risk identification and responsibility allocation in contemporary co-creation.