Article by Mariel Lozada and Rina Chandran: “Among the thousands of candidates seeking election in Colombia’s parliamentary polls this month is an artificial intelligence avatar. Its creator hopes it will change the way Indigenous people in the country are represented, despite concerns of bias and access.
Gaitana — created by Carlos Redondo, and other members of the Zenú community —is the digital representation of two Indigenous candidates for Senate and congressional seats in the March 8 election. Named for a 16th-century revolutionary leader, Gaitana is depicted as a blue-skinned woman who is an environmentalist and animal rights advocate. The bot communicates in Spanish, and currently has more than 10,000 users.
Colombian law requires human candidates, so Redondo is competing for the Senate, and Alba Rincón, an anthropologist and sociologist from the Emberá Katío ethnic group, is running for the House of Representatives. On the ballot, though, they appear as IA, the Spanish acronym for artificial intelligence. If elected, Redondo and Rincón will occupy seats reserved for Indigenous people, and defer to the digital platform to seek consensus from their communities on all legislative matters, Redondo told Rest of World…(More)”.
