Vassar Moodle

From recommendation engines and chatbots to predictive policing and climate modeling, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly woven into the fabric of daily life. This course takes a critical, interdisciplinary perspective on AI to examine how cultural, political, and economic forces shape these seemingly intelligent technologies; and how, in turn, these systems influence society and everyday life. Central to the course is the issue of accountability and responsibility: Who is responsible when AI systems produce biased decisions or (re)produce inequalities? How can we reckon with the environmental harms of the present embedded in these future-making technologies? What forms of governance, regulation, or grassroots activism can steer AI toward more just outcomes? Students will engage with global perspectives and postcolonial critiques of computing that create space for learning about alternative technological futures. The goal is to help students critically assess the narratives, infrastructures, and practices that underpin AI and to develop informed perspectives on how these technologies might be governed and reimagined for more equitable futures.