By Blathnaid O’Dea
A research project led by Trinity College Dublin (TCD) aims to show people across Europe that AI and other knowledge technologies can be beneficial for engaging in the democratic process.
Trinity College Dublin’s Adapt research centre’s part in the project will be focused on attitudes in academia and the software development sectors.
Knowledge Technologies for Democracy (KT4D) is a pan-European consortium of 12 partner organisations, including NGOs, SMEs and research institutes. It is being spearheaded by TCD’s Long Room Hub for Digital Humanities.
Those involved in KT4D aim to harness developments in AI to show people how technology can assist and benefit democracy.
They will work on raising awareness of the importance of designing ethical AI and technology tools. Their remit will also see them create new tools, such as regulatory tools for policy and civil society organisations.
As well as Dublin, the project is in the majority based in three other European cities, Brussels, Madrid and Warsaw.
It will validate its work through use cases in each city. Each use case will target different groups based on different needs.
TCD’s Adapt centre for AI research will be at the forefront of running the Dublin-based use case. The Dublin case will focus on improving awareness of tech’s potential for benefitting civil society among academics and the industrial software development sector.
RELATED: AI Tech Start-Up Aims To Replace Software Development With Generative AI
Prof Jennifer Edmond, associate professor of Digital Humanities and Culture at TCD and researcher at the Adapt centre said she wanted to instil in citizens the importance of technology.
“Coming from a background in digital humanities, I know how important culture is to the way we use technology.”
“Because of the unique constellation of researchers from the humanities and social sciences, plus companies and civil society organisations, KT4D will be in a unique position to harness this awareness in order to make a substantial contribution to the development of democracy in the digital age,” Edmond concluded.
Source: Silicon Republic, 2023. Image: © Alexander/Stock.adobe.com
