Generative Art Timeline · Chapter 3: Analog Era (1950s)
1951
Marvin Minsky and Dean Edmonds Build the SNARC Neural Network Machine
SNARC (Stochastic Neural Analog Reinforcement Calculator), the first artificial neural network, was composed of simple electronic circuits that could learn from their environment and adjust their behavior accordingly. Using 3,000 vacuum tubes to simulate a network of 40 neurons, it paved the way for the development of modern machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Text by Peter Bauman. Generative Art Timeline, Le Random, fact-checked September 2026.
Sources
People
Movements
Machine Learning Art
Filed under
- Technologies
- artificial intelligence, machine learning, neural networks, reinforcement learning, SNARC, vacuum tube
- People
- Dean Edmonds, Marvin Minsky
Echoes across time
- 1990 · Jürgen Schmidhuber Proposes Artificial Curiosity
- 1982 · Paul Werbos Proposes Backpropagation to Train Neural Networks
- 2014 · Ian Goodfellow Introduces GANs
Le Random editorials
- Christiane Paul on Defining AI Art, Peter Bauman, April 23, 2025
- THEN AND NOW, Jasia Reichardt, June 25, 2024
Le Random podcast
- Tom White & Gene Kogan on the Birth of GAN Art (Deep Learning Series 01) — listen with transcript on Le Random (14 Apr 2025, 44 min). Transcript mentions Marvin Minsky. Apple Podcasts · Spotify
- Timeline Ch 3—Analog Era (1950s) with Georg Bak — listen with transcript on Le Random (10 Aug 2023, 65 min). Chapter 3’s episode. Apple Podcasts · Spotify