A portrait of English mathematician Alan Turing became the first artwork by a humanoid robot to be sold at auction, fetching more than $1.0 million on Thursday.

Ai-Da Robot, named after Ada Lovelace, who is considered to be the first computer programmer, has become the first humanoid robotic artist to have their artwork sold by a major auction house.

Portrait by the world's first ultra-realistic robot artist smashed presale expectations of US$180,000 A portrait of English mathematician Alan Turing became the first artwork by a humanoid robot to be sold at auction,

A portrait of English mathematician Alan Turing became the first artwork by a humanoid robot to be sold at auction.

"The fundamental value of my work is its ability to serve as a catalyst for dialogue on emerging technologies," said the robot, which expresses itself through artificial intelligence

Former gallerist Aidan Meller worked with a team of almost 30 people to build the robot, which is named Ai-Da, after Ada Lovelace.