Proceedings of the Electroacoustic Music Studies Network Conference, Leicester, November 2021 www.ems-network.org 1 Ambient Intelligence in Electroacoustic Music: Towards a Future of Self-Organising Music Ambient Intelligence in Electroacoustic Music: Towards a Future of Self-Organising Music Phivos-Angelos Kollias Independent Researcher music@phivos-angelos-kollias.com Abstract In this article, we discuss the current role of Ambient Intelligence (AmI) in electroacoustic music and reflect on its future. AmI refers to the user-centric approach of seamless ‘intelligent’ environments designed to continuously adapt to the user’s needs and intentions. We have previously discussed a contemporary emergent trend in electroacoustic music identified as ‘self-organising music’. This trend is directly related to the technological concepts of AmI: i.e., it includes works able to ‘sense’ their environment and change their functional structure – self-organise sonically – in response to this environment through decentralised ‘intelligent’ control processes. This article continues beyond our original discussion by envisioning an emerging musical tendency, determined by music interfaces using AmI. This consequently poses radically novel technical and aesthetic questions; new principles for creating music as well as for experiencing it - and as a result perceiving/describing/studying it. In other terms, the consideration of the perceptual ‘paradigm shift’, reflected by implications of AmI. We therefore suggest that it is important to think, not only in terms of technological progress but also in terms of a mental evolution. 1. Introduction In this article, we discuss the role of AmI in electroacoustic music and reflect on the prospect of a possible future. AmI refers to the user-centric approach of seamless intelligent 1 environments designed to continuously adapt to the user’s needs and intentions (Aarts E. et al. 2001, Gunnarsdóttir and Arribas-Ayllon 2011). AmI is an emergent combination of several technological disciplines like human-machine interaction (HMI), artificial intelligence (AI), pervasive-ubiquitous computing, networks and sensors (Augusto and McCullagh 2007). 1 This article uses the term intelligence for its technological connotations, without its philosophical implications. For a critique of the concept of intelligence in AI, see (Varela 1996).