A Systems Analysis Approach for Business Optimization: Integrating Technology Development with Data Analytics and Marketing for GolfCask; The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Cultural and Sociological Perceptions of Art

The rise of artificial engineering has taken the world by storm – in both the world of art and the systems engineering industries. This has sparked debate regarding human roles in artistic creation and a new form of business optimization. In my capstone project, my team applied a systems engineering approach to enhance the business model of GolfCask by integrating technology, recommender systems, and marketing strategies. The main goal was to foster user engagement and increase overall membership. On the other hand, my STS research paper explores the cultural and sociological impacts of artificial intelligence within the art industry. Diving deeper into understanding how the present and future of image-generators are shaped by current stakeholders, the research was focused on delving into the ethical challenges of the technology and what constitutes legitimate artwork. Both efforts are inherently related to working between the relationship of technology and societal impact. My capstone project focuses on optimizing the business process through data, while my STS project evaluates AI’s influence on the traditional definitions of art and creativity.
The GolfCask project focused heavily on optimizing the business model using a systems engineering approach. By identifying key objectives such as increasing user engagement, fostering a community for golf and whiskey lovers, and improving website interaction to explore events and tastings. Methods such as data analytics through programming and marketing strategies through UTM codes was employed to develop a personalized recommender system. By integrating it with data-driven insights, the team hoped to enhance user interaction and drive growth.
The results of the project highlighted the importance of driving community participation by encouraging more engagement across platforms offered by GolfCask. The whiskey recommender system, validated with real user data, proved to be quite effective in offering more choices for whiskeys based on the user’s preferences and tastes. Marketing analytics – specifically UTM codes – helped track this engagement and showed that short videos and concise email formats were the most effective in drawing in members. Ultimately, the project provided actionable recommendations for GolfCask to put into place in order to grow its membership base long-term.
In my STS paper, I explored the growing evolution of AI within the creative industry. Image generators have begun to challenge the true definition of art which has sparked conversation regarding if AI-generated art counts as true art. The primary research question focused on how AI has changed the perceptions of creativity, authenticity, and cultural implications of artwork, and vice versa. The methodology involved a literature review of the sociology of art as well as empirical data collection of images from various AI models such as DALL-E, OpenAI, and Google Imagen.
The notion of human-centered creativity within artwork is treated differently by various sociologists and philosophers. Since this technology is part of the collective art process, it can be viewed as essential and helpful towards creating new pieces. However, due to its lack of emotional depth and historical context, the analysis also revealed that AI-generated artwork may not be authentic. The AI models also predominantly reflect Western aesthetics and ideals, marginalizing non-Western representation. The research emphasized a need for a more inclusive training of AI models as well as an ethical framework that can help settle the debate of image-generators going forward.

School of Engineering and Applied Science

Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering

Technical Advisor: Matthew Burkett, William Scherer

STS Advisor: Pedro Augusto Francisco

Technical Team Members: Christian Hooper, Lucas Hyman, Elena Johnson, Alex McCall, Matthew Tan