Presentation by:

Dr McEdward Murimbika (PhD.; M.Mgmt; M.Phil.; Ph.D. cand.)

Wits Business School & FTT580 Consotium

murimbikam@ftt580.com | www.ftt580.com

Shaping AI: Integrating Indigenous Knowledge Systems in the age of Exponential Artificial

Intelligence

Moses Kotane Institute (MKI) 4IR Summit,

25-26 March 2019, Durban

Issues covered in the presentation1. Indigenous Knowledge Systems – global & local

perspectives

2. Significance of IK to local communities

3. Global scenario – Traditional Vs. New World –Origins of Artificial Intelligence

4. Opportunity for convergence between IK and AI

5. Back to the Future – Are we ready for the exponential disruptions ahead

Source: AAAS TEK-PAD

Knowledge is experience

---

everything else is information

Einstein

Global View On Traditional Knowledge

Defined by WIPO

Currently uses the term Traditional knowledge (TK) to refer to:

• tradition-based literary, artistic or scientific works;

• performances; inventions; scientific discoveries;

• designs; marks, names and symbols; undisclosed information;

• and all other tradition-based innovations and creations resulting from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields.

• Tradition-based refers to knowledge systems, creations, innovations and cultural expressions which:

• (i) have generally been transmitted from generation to generation;

• (ii) are generally regarded as pertaining to a particular people or its territory;

• (iii) and are constantly evolving in response to a changing environment

Background In South African Context • After the first democratic elections, the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and

Technology was established to do the following:

• "realise the full potential of arts, culture, science and technology in social and economic development, nurture creativity and innovation, and promote the diverse heritage of our nation".

• 2003- the Department split into two, namely Department of Arts and Culture andthe Department of Science and Technology.

• 2004 -The National Indigenous Knowledge Systems Policy came into being

• As a result the National Indigenous Knowledge Systems Office (NIKSO) wasestablished to help facilitate the coordination of work done by other sisterdepartments in relation to indigenous knowledge systems.

• According to the policy, several departments were assigned particular mandates todeliver in relation to indigenous knowledge systems

Significance of Indigenous Knowledge at Local Level?

◼Unique to ANY community or culture

◼Embedded in community practices and institutions

◼Basis for local decision making pertaining to food security, human and animal health, education, natural resource management, governance, etc.

◼ Indigenous Knowledge is the social and intellectual capital of the poor

◼ Indigenous Knowledge is the basis for their decision making

◼ Indigenous Knowledge provides local solutions to development challenges facing local communities

◼By building on Indigenous Knowledge and leveraging other knowledge, poverty can be addressed jointly with the poor

Why should the Provincial leadership f KZN Care?

Current value and importance of Indigenous & Traditional knowledge systems and expressions of traditional cultures

• biodiversity conservation• food security• environmental management• sustainable development• primary healthcare• cultural identity and social cohesion• cultural diversity• improvement of socio-economic livelihoods

Setting the scene• Why should we worry about IKS – We are

already in the Future? 4IR is already here!• What common societal trends that are transforming

the Global Society?

•Demographic trends

•Expertise trend

•Attention trend

•Democratic trend

Most organisations including government have “targeted”

intelligence to track issues that are Strategically important but

lack an “open” process to recognise emerging patterns and

issues that no one internally has yet identified as strategic.

So What is the problem?Traditional or New found wisdom

Origins of Artificial intelligence• End of WWII Vannevar Bush ’s seminal work As We May

Think proposed a system which amplifies people’s own knowledge and understanding

• In 1950 English Mathematician Alan Turing published a paper entitled “Computing Machinery and Intelligence”

• 1956 term artificial intelligence coined by John McCarthy at first academic conference on the subject

• Follow up Alan Turing wrote “Can machines think?” focus on notion of machines being able to simulate human beings and the ability to do intelligent things, such as play Chess

The Age of AI was born racing along exponential technologies

Revolution Foretold - Exponential Technology

1. Moore’s Law - In 1965, Intel’s founder, Gordon Moore, predicted that processing power of computer chip / microprocessors effectively doubles every 18 months becoming more powerful, accessible and cheaper.

2. Metcalfe’s Law - Networking pioneer” Robert Metcalfe 1983, states that the value of a networkwill increase with the square of the number of itsparticipants & that networks become more valuable the more people use them.

3. “The Law of Disruption” – innovation-driven growth -HBR 1995 - The dissemination of change is “uneven.” Various elements of society struggle to keep up with rapid technological change.

Curb Your Enthusiasm - How did we get Here?

The Revolutions1st Industrial Revolution (1760 to c. 1840) – the humble Steam2nd industrial revolution (between 1870 and 1914) – Centralised electricity; telephone and television, Internal combustion EngineThe Age of Synergy - the inventions and innovations were engineering & science-based3rd Industrial Revolution: -Digital Revolution - mechanical and analogue electronic technology to digital electronics 1950s to 1970s • adoption and proliferation of digital computers and digital record keeping

Industry 4.0:• Exponential technology trend • Industrial internet of things • AI

Detour: Role of Africa during the 1st – 3rd Industrial Revolutions

King Ghezo of Dahomey alongside the infamous Brazilian slave trader Francisco

Félix de SousaSource: Adapted from David Olusoga 2016

The Brooks – 1783 diagram shows 451 Africans packed into decks yet the ship had sailed with

609 slaves on board.Source: Adapted from David Olusoga 2016

Disruptive Technologies S-Curve

1. “Digitalization”

2. “Deception” –

3. “Disruption” –

4. “Demonetization” –

5. “Dematerialization” –

6. “Democratization” –

Source: Peter H. Diamandis and scientist Steve Kotler - Abundance - getAbstract © 2015

6Ds of Disruptive Technologies

The 4IR - explore the interactions across technologies IoET.

• In 1981, 1 gigabyte of storage cost half a million dollars. Today, it's 25 million times cheaper at 2 cents per gigabyte.

• In 1971, Intel installed 1st computer chip, the Intel 4004. It had 2,300 transistors on at $1 each

• Today Intel no longer tell it customers how many transistors are on their chips, but the recent Core i7 had 14.4 billion transistors at less than a millionth of a penny each.

• This represents a 330 billion-fold increase in price performance in 45 years

• A Smartphone today has more computational than all the governments on the planet had just 3 decades ago

• But that doesn't compare to what's coming next in quantum computing.

• Google recently unveiled Bristlecone. This new quantum computer chip has 72 qubits. By 300 qubits, it can perform more calculations than there are atoms in the known

universe.• With the Internet of Things and a proliferation of sensors, by 2020 we'll have 50 billion

connected devices with a trillion sensors in the world. By 2030, we’ll see 500 billion connected devices with 100 trillion sensors.

• Most of these will be about AI

In Pursuit of Artificial Intelligence

Automated intelligence,

Assisted intelligence

Augmented intelligence

Autonomous intelligence

Over the last 50 years AI has developed along side the

Computer revolution and has helped solve many

problems,

1. adaptive spam blocking,

2. image/voice recognition,

3. high performance searching etc.

Development AI - local contributionOver the years we have also learned that having a massive

knowledge base isn’t enough

• Therefore protecting and promoting IKS is not enough

• The hard problem in the field of AI is finding a way to teach

a machine to think, but in order to articulate ‘thought’ in a

way current computers can understand we must first

understand thinking and intelligence ourselves in our own

contexts.

• Whose formula or language of thinking and intelligence

should we pursuing? Or it is building?

• Or we wait for other parties to handle is and we just join

in the consumption at opportune time?

Opportunity for Convergence of AI and IKS

Example of AI Application - Expert SystemsExpert systems are AI computer programs aiming to model human expertise in one or more specific knowledge areas. • Consist of three basic components:

1. a knowledge database with facts and rules representing human knowledge and experience; (IKS as candidate)

2. an inference engine processing consultation and determining how inferences are being made; (Building local Capacity - Opportunity for education and training)

3. and an input/output interface for interactions with the user (New Value Creation Locally driven and controlled systems).

• K. S. Metaxiotis et al., - expert systems characterized by:1. using symbolic logic rather than only numerical calculations (coding IK as

input Foundation);2. the processing is data-driven (IKS as input Data Source)3. a knowledge database containing explicit contents of certain area of

knowledge; (IKS as input Data Source), and4. the ability to interpret its conclusions in the way that is understandable to

the user (Generation of new value based on IKS input)

The Local Governments must begin to assess the effect of AI and exponential technologies on local communities as we move into Multi-species Society

▪ Markets

▪ 40-70% volume

programmatic trading

▪ Future of work

▪ 50% jobs at risk of

technological outsourcing

by 2045

Where is our MEC for the

Future?Sources: Miller, R.S. and Shorter, G. (2016). High Frequency Trading: Overview of Recent Developments. U.S. CRS. 7-5700.

R44443. Frey, C.B. and Osborne, M.A. (2013). The Future of Employment: How susceptible are Jobs to Computerisation. Oxford.

Where to - Technological Unemployment

Identity Crisis

Source: Swan, M. (2017). Cognitive Easing: Human Identity Crisis in a World of Technology,

http://ieet.org/index.php/IEET/more/Swan20170107.

▪ Human identity defined by labor contribution

▪ Lower-level Maslow for surviving not thriving

?

Thrive

(extend baseline)

Survive

(reach baseline)

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

(original)

Solution: Reconceptualization of “Life”

Work Leisure

Community

Creativity

Learning

Spirituality

Club

s

Source: Swan, M. (2016). Abundance Economics.http://www.slideshare.net/lablogga/abundance-economics

Productive and enjoyable

engagement of faculties

(job 2.0 or other)

Health

Teaching

Exercise

Music

Sport

s

Relaxation

Fun

Life 1.0 Life 2.0

Job of the future: Life

Coach becomes Life

Designer

Art

Teams

Artificial

Intelligence

Intelligence

Augmentation

A machine performing physical or

cognitive tasks usually conducted

by a human: involves processing

and possibly decision-making

Augmenting natural human

intelligence with organic or

inorganic means

Who is defining The version of South African

Rapprochement: Human and Machine

Who is controlling Technology development

• If the future is here and just not evenly distributed as The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed, - as prophesised by noir prophet" William Ford Gibson -, would not indigenous knowledge be the point of reference in attempts to address key aspects of the

– local technoculture and

– socio-biomedical advancements

• IK input is required to drive improved understanding and manipulation of cognitive processes which may open up rigid conceptualisations of personal, community and national identities to pluralistic models demanded by the 4IR

Driving Growth through IKS AI

• Here is opportunity to open IKS and IK banks to a new generation of exponential entrepreneurship based on the Triple Helix partnership approach 1. Cooperation between local government, local

research, innovation and academic institutions and local communities and businesses.

2. The approach should be deliberate and biased towards local youth empowering them with the new technopreneurial skills and technological languages of our times

3. Enable their participation and creative leadership into the future.

• The only readily available unique local unifying thread is the IKS

THANK YOU

Dr McEdward Murimbika (PhD.; M.Mgmt; M.Phil.; Ph.D. cand.)

murimbikam@ftt580.com | www.ftt580.com