b'ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCEand a response time that is beyondTraditionally,learningalanguagethe Montreal-based research institute human capability. Additionally, MLinvolves hours and hours of study,Mila on language AI for Indigenous systems learn over time and can there- practice and interactions with nativelanguages in North America. The compa-fore identify incidents with greater accu- speakers. This comes at great cost innys First Languages AI Reality (FLAIR) racy over time. Speed of response is anboth time and money. AI can provideinitiative uses advanced immersive AI essential part of reducing the impact ofa new way of language learning that istechnology to develop custom auto-cyber-related crimes, and this is some- more accessible and personalized. It hasmatic speech recognition models for thing that AI excels at.the potential to revitalize IndigenousIndigenous languages.languages at risk of extinction. LANGUAGE LEARNING AT WHAT COST?One of the most remarkable appli- As such, AI has huge applications asThe benefits of AI are plenty and AI advo-cations of AI and ML has been ina tool for cultural preservation. MLcates are heralding a new age of effi-theadvancementoflanguagelanguage tools can be implementedciency, however not all is as straight-learning, and this can play a key roleto grow and share local languages withforward as it seems. While AI has been inthepreservationofIndigenousyounger generations, alongside morearound in one way or another for over languages,whicharecurrentlyattraditional language learning.two decades, the risks are still coming great risk. According to UNESCO, 90to light. In particular, AI has potentially per cent of North American languagesMichael Running Wolf is an innovatorproblematic applications for Indigenous are endangered.already implementing AI in Indigenousbusinesses and communities looking to language learning. After growing up inexpand into its use. AI can be employed to digitize andthe Northern Cheyenne Reservation preserve Indigenous languages, andand graduating from the University ofREINFORCING BIASoral, traditional and cultural knowl- Montana with a masters in computer edge, Proctor explains. It can facil- science, he worked for IT giants likeOne of the most glaring concerns with AI itate language revitalization effortsIBM, AT&T and Amazon. It was his worktechnology for Indigenous businesses by tailoring language lessons to indi- on the Amazon Alexa program that gotexists within the intersection of privacy vidual learnings and offering interac- him interested in AI as an Indigenousand sample bias. AI and ML programs tive experiences. language tool and he now works withare only as effective as the source mate-rials they pull from, and if the data is inherently biased or non-represen-tative, then the outcomes can serve to exacerbate these problems. Take facial recognition software that utilizes AI. A company like Amazon uses their employees likeness as training data, Everyone Has a Role to Play but what happens if these workplaces DIVERSITY dont have a diverse employee data set? EMPOWERED As a rule, Indigenous people are not represented proportionally in large IT companies such as Google or Amazon. E.S. Fox Limited These models were really good at differ-entiating European descent or Asian descent, the typical employees of these companies, Running Wolf says, but they came up against difficulties in identi-fying differences between Indigenous or African American people. This issue is not isolated to the IT world, emphasizes Running Wolf. It exists in every industry where AI is implemented naively, without accounting for reali-BRIDGING THE GAP TO PROMOTE, STRENGTHEN, ANDties, be it agriculture, medicine, phar-ENHANCE A PROSPEROUS INDIGENOUS ECONOMYmacology or business. As such, there are potential risks involved in unin-EDUCATION - RELATIONSHIPS - COLLABORATION - PROSPERITY formed implementation of AI and ML tools. Were creating these systems and we are deluding ourselves that theyre www.esfox.com | 905-354-3700 | hr@esfox.com neutral, Running Wolf says. Theyre reflecting biases in our society. 26A CCAB PUBLICATIONWinter 2024'