Last week, we had a great gathering organized by the fabulous Inclusive AI Lab, led by Payal Arora. The four-day event was part of the Data Care workshop series and had the motto – and aim – of Reclaiming Tech-Optimism. The Inclusive AI Lab, Utrecht University, follows the main purpose of opening up, diversifying, and reimagining AI together with the Majority world – which was reflected in the diverse set of speakers and audience – ranging from academic scholars, policy advisors, industry, to civil society from all over the world. The colorful exchange consisted of panel discussions, deep-dive workshops, field trips, and lots of interactive parts that made us get to know each other in ways we haven’t experienced so far (especially not in academic contexts) – such as introducing ourselves in ways we haven’t before, asking personal questions or staring in each others’ eyes for 2 (!) min without speaking, or talking to strangers on the street. Having been hesitant at first, I was ultimately surprised by the intimate connections we built and the hopeful vibes that were generated this way.

Together with Mirko Tobias Schäfer (Data School, Utrecht Univ.), and the support leads Rana Kuseyri and Constanze Kerres, I organized a workshop on “Situated AI Ethics: How to move from Values to Action” and a field trip to The Hague to visit the Data Protection Authority (DPA) and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs to talk about algorithmic systems in welfare states and how the Dutch Government responded to the Childcare Benefits Scandal more particularly (kindly supported by the ÖAW Commission Democracy in Digital Societies). The DPA’s professional and proactive take on algorithmic harm, risk mitigation, and human oversight gives me hope indeed! Two notions that particularly sticked with me were “institutional racism” and “institutional literacy”, which needs to be built on the very top of organizations rather than putting the burden on individuals such as citizens or civil servants. We’re currently collecting and organizing our ideas and planning to write a commentary or opinion piece based on the rich discussions we had – ideally together with some of the workshop participants and their wonderful examples of hopeful AI from different countries, cultures, and institutional contexts.

The spirit of hope – From Pessimism to Promise – will also guide our discussions next week that will take place as part of the Digital Humanism Conference in Vienna. First, Katja Mayer and I have organized a PhD workshop at the STS Department to discuss “Alternative Imaginaries of Social Digital Innovation from the Global South to Europe” together with Payal Arora and Gilberto Vieira from data_labe (Rio de Janeiro), as well as PhD students working on AI, policy, and human oversight in different institutional contexts. Second, we’ve organized a panel discussion with Payal, Gilberto, and Juliane Jarke to discuss how to reimagine and rebuild more inclusive digital futures – in Europe and the Global South(s).

I’m already looking forward to exciting days ahead!