Research Symposium on Collaborative Artificial Intelligence
Participatory AI Research & Practice Symposium (PAIRS) Set to Discuss Inclusive AI Development and Governance
The Participatory AI Research & Practice Symposium (PAIRS) is an open event that focuses on engaging diverse communities in the design, auditing, and evaluation of AI systems. Organized by the Tech & Global Affairs Innovation Hub, PAIRS will take place on February 8th, preceding the Paris AI Action Summit.
PAIRS aims to document and support a "participatory turn" in AI development and governance, encouraging active involvement by relevant stakeholders in shaping and scrutinizing AI technologies. The symposium will bring together international researchers, policymakers, activists, and community organizers to discuss the conditions of public trust in AI systems.
The event will consist of plenary sessions and workshops distributed in three core tracks: Participatory AI Development, Participatory AI Governance, and Participation, Power, and Resistance.
Participatory AI Development will feature speakers such as Tina M. Park (Partnership on AI), Naftali Ndeapo Indongo (Namibia University of Science and Technology, UNESCO Chair for Indigenous Knowledge Research Cluster), and Jeremy Boy (UNDP). They will discuss the importance of empowering users and communities to critically engage with AI systems, fostering AI literacy, and identifying harms or biases that might be overlooked by traditional expert-driven audits.
Participatory AI Governance will delve into inclusive, community-grounded governance models that reflect diverse values and epistemologies, not just those of AI developers or technocrats. This can help democratize control over AI’s societal impact and reduce biases embedded in AI systems.
The Participation, Power, and Resistance track will explore power dynamics in AI development and governance, focusing on how participatory approaches can promote more equitable and socially responsive AI developments. Speakers include Clarie Alspektor & David Mas (Make.org), Eloïse Gabadou, Suzy Madigan (Responsible AI Lead, CARE International), and Blair Attard-Frost (University of Toronto) & Ana Brandusescu (McGill University).
Some of the other notable participants in the symposium include Jess Reia & Pedro Augusto Pereira Francisco (University of Virginia), Ania Calderon (Data & Society), Reema Patel (Public Voices in AI & Digital Good Network), Claire Mellier (Iswe Foundation), Sonam Jindal (Partnership on AI), Vinay Narayan (Aapti Institute), Susan Oman (Public Voices in AI & Digital Good Network), Avid Ovadya (AI and Democracy Foundation), Estelle Hary (RMIT University), Soizic Pénicaud (Independent), Renee Sieber (McGill University), Bobina Zulfa (Pollicy), Tim Davies (Connected by Data), Meg Young (Data & Society), and Pierre Noro (SciencesPo Technology and Global Affairs Innovation Hub).
PAIRS represents a crucial shift in AI research and governance toward collaborative, bottom-up participation, which can lead to more ethical, equitable, and socially responsive AI developments. The symposium aligns with broader movements calling for knowledge democratization and equitable access to AI technologies and governance, emphasizing that who participates in AI decision-making shapes whose interests are reflected and safeguarded.
[1] https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/18/5128 [3] https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/18/5128/htm
Technology and artificial-intelligence will be discussed at the Participatory AI Research & Practice Symposium (PAIRS), an event focused on inclusive AI development and governance. The symposium, which aims to democratize control over AI’s societal impact, will feature international researchers, policymakers, activists, and community organizers, who will delve into the importance of involving users and communities in shaping and scrutinizing AI technologies, thereby promoting ethical, equitable, and socially responsive AI developments.
