Watercolour portrait of Ada King, Countess of Lovelace

Watercolour portrait of Ada King, Countess of Lovelace

Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace was an English mathematician and writer, chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine.

In 1843, Ada Lovelace translates 'Sketch of the Analytical Engine', invented by Charles Babbage. In the notes to the translation, she develops what is considered the first algorithm to make Babbage's engine compute a full Bernoulli sequence - effectively making her the first computer programmer.

The Barbican's AI: More than Human (16 May-26 Aug 2019) is an major exhibition exploring creative and scientific developments in artificial intelligence demonstrating its potential to revolutionise our lives. Part of Life Rewired, the Barbican's 2019 season exploring what it means to be human when technology is changing everything.