The Epistemological Foundations Conversations feature members of the Abundant Intelligences research team sharing how the knowledge frameworks in their field are constructed, validated, and employed. Our second EF Conversation features Prof. Yoshua Bengio (UdM & Mila), Keoni Mahelona (Te Hiku Media), and Prof. Blake Richards (McGill & Mila).

Integrating Indigenous Knowledges with the knowledge systems that underlie AI research is fraught with epistemic challenges. Fundamental questions about what counts as knowledge, how we validate that knowledge, and how we act on it become acute when such different frameworks for engaging the world come into relationship with one another. For instance, much Indigenous Knowledge resides in cultural practices such as stories and songs, with an insistence on retaining the complexity of lived experience. This can make them seem unruly when viewed from a Western scientific framework that prioritizes climbing a ladder of abstraction to reach simple universal principles. A major goal of the Conversation Series is to address these discrepancies so as to synchronize expertise, methodologies, and goals that reside within the Abundant Intelligences Research Program.