If Cooperative AI offers an alternative vision, how can it be implemented in practice?

A research team led by Denise Kasparian, and including Katarzyna Cieslik, Cecilia Muñoz Cancela, Julieta Grasas, Hernán Gigena, and Agustina Sunico, is exploring this question through empirical work with cooperative organisations in Argentina, focusing on how AI can be developed in ways that reflect collective needs and values.

Co-designing research with communities

A central feature of the project is its commitment to co-design.

Rather than studying cooperatives from a distance, the team works closely with them to shape both the research questions and the methodological approach. This includes ongoing collaboration with organisations such as Proyecto Chasqui, CoopCycle Argentina, and FACTTIC.

This process requires time, flexibility, and trust (often built over years of engagement) but it ensures that the research remains grounded in real-world practices and priorities.

Creating spaces for reflection

One of the key findings from the team’s interviews is the lack of structured spaces within organisations to discuss AI-related issues.

To address this, the project plans to organise workshops with cooperative actors, creating opportunities to collectively reflect on the role of AI, its risks, and its potential uses.

These spaces are not only research tools, they are also part of the project’s impact, fostering dialogue and experimentation within the cooperative ecosystem.

Rethinking knowledge production

The project also challenges how knowledge about AI is produced and shared.

Given the limitations of traditional academic dissemination, the team emphasises the importance of alternative formats, including workshops, webinars, podcasts, and social media.

This approach aims to make research more accessible and to amplify the voices of actors who are often underrepresented in global debates on AI.

Principles for inclusive AI

Through its work, the team identifies several key principles for ensuring that AI benefits the global majority:

• strengthening civic understanding of AI, enabling individuals to engage critically with technological systems; 
• ensuring data transparency and security, particularly in contexts where regulation is limited; 
• reorienting technological development towards fundamental human needs, rather than technological spectacle or market-driven priorities. 

As the team emphasises, AI should not be seen as an end in itself, but as a tool that must serve collective wellbeing.

A broader transformation

Beyond specific tools or frameworks, the project invites a deeper reflection on the role of technology in society.

By drawing on the cooperative tradition, it suggests that AI could become an opportunity to rethink how work is organised, how value is created, and how digital infrastructures are governed.

This perspective challenges dominant narratives and opens up new possibilities for more democratic and inclusive technological futures.

Looking ahead

The team will present its findings at the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva (7-10 July 2026) as part of ITU’s Kaleidoscope sessions, on Thursday, 9 July 2026, from 15:30 to 16:30. More information soon.

Their research highlights a powerful idea:
The future of AI is not predetermined: it can be shaped by the values and institutions we choose to build.

About AI for the Global Majority

AI for the Global Majority (AI4GM) is a joint initiative of the Geneva Graduate Institute, Microsoft, and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) dedicated to supporting innovative, evidence-based, and context-sensitive research on how artificial intelligence can benefit the world’s majority populations.

Bringing together interdisciplinary teams from across regions and sectors, the initiative explores practical pathways for more inclusive, responsible, and impactful AI in areas such as governance, education, health, finance, and digital innovation.

Selected teams will present their work in Geneva as part of the AI for Good Global Summit, contributing to international discussions on the future of AI and global development.