RAi Response to Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development Study (2025)

This response was submitted to the Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development (EMRTD) United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) inquiry about Artificial Intelligence, Cultural Rights, and the Right to Development, on behalf of the CulturAI project. We are a team of researchers funded by Responsible AI UK (RAI UK), working on Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Responsible Artificial Intelligence (AI) topics, and based at the University of Nottingham, University of Southampton, and King’s College London. CulturAI is a 12-month project, running from February 2025 to February 2026. We have been investigating the evaluation of cultural sensitivity and representation in Text-to-Image (T2I) models. We welcome this consultation and aim to inform the EMRTD study.

The response is based on our research findings from a literature review on how culture has been conceptualised in Generative AI (Gen AI) research, and co-creation workshops with 59 individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds in 19 countries, in which we co-created a mixed-methods methodology for evaluating cultural representation in T2I models. This response also draws on our own experiences and expertise.

https://doi.org/10.25878/7nmj-0t79