We invite HCI researchers, AI and NLP practitioners, policymakers, educators, designers, community representatives, and students to participate in the CHI 2026 workshop AI Across Cultures: Co-Designing Equitable and Culturally Grounded Futures.
Artificial Intelligence and Human–Computer Interaction are often presented as universal, yet their design, data, infrastructures, and governance are largely shaped by high-resource contexts. This workshop centers low-resource, indigenous, and culturally diverse settings not as edge cases, but as starting points for innovation. We explore how AI can be designed, adapted, and governed in ways that foreground cultural identity, linguistic diversity, equity, and sustainability.
The workshop will bring together an interdisciplinary community to reflect on how technical design practices, participatory methods, and policy frameworks can be aligned to support culturally grounded and community-led AI futures.
Key Questions
The workshop will engage participants around the following guiding questions:
• How can AI be adapted to support indigenous languages and cultural contexts in inclusive, sustainable, and respectful ways?
• What sociotechnical frameworks are needed to align AI design with community norms, governance structures, and cultural rights?
• How can design practices and policy development be pursued together to ensure equitable and viable AI adoption in low-resource settings?
• In what ways can HCI bridge technical feasibility, governance mechanisms, and lived cultural practices?
• How can we collectively imagine futures where AI strengthens cultural identity, protects linguistic diversity, and empowers communities?
Scope and Topics of Interest
We welcome position contributions related to, but not limited to:
• Case studies of AI in low-resource or culturally diverse contexts
• Community-led or participatory design approaches for culturally grounded AI
• Resource-building for underrepresented languages, including datasets, tools, and evaluation methods
• Governance, policy, data licensing, and rights-aware ethical frameworks
• Cross-border collaboration, knowledge transfer, and capacity-building
• Vision pieces, speculative design, or design fiction exploring culturally grounded AI futures
Submission Formats
Participants are invited to submit short position contributions in one of the following formats:
• Papers: 4–6 pages (excluding references), using the ACM Master Article single-column template
• Alternative media: Audio, video, artwork, photo essays, or other creative formats, accompanied by a 1-page statement of intent
Submissions should articulate the author’s perspective, experience, or ongoing work and how it relates to the workshop themes.
Submission Instructions
• Submission deadline: 5 February 2026 (Anywhere on Earth)
• Notification of acceptance: 20 February 2026 (Anywhere on Earth)
Submissions will be reviewed for originality, relevance, and potential to contribute to interactive discussion, while ensuring diversity across regions, disciplines, and career stages. At least one author of each accepted contribution must register for and attend the workshop in person at CHI 2026.
Workshop Outcomes and Publication Plans
With author consent, accepted contributions may be shared on the workshop website for discussion purposes. This does not constitute archival publication. Following the workshop, contributors will be invited to collaboratively author a post-workshop synthesis paper capturing shared insights, research gaps, and future directions for culturally grounded AI and HCI research. This paper will be prepared for submission to a peer-reviewed venue and made openly available.
Accessibility
We are committed to making the workshop accessible. All materials (slides, activity templates, and outputs) will be shared in accessible formats. Participants are welcome to contact the organizers in advance with specific accessibility requests.
