BTS: An 'inclusive' AI platform?

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You know about ChatGPT and CoPilot and Claude and Perplexity and…the list goes on.

There’s no shortage of generic generative AI chatbots ready for your prompt, but some models are popping up that are more purpose-driven. Namely, AI platforms are being built with diverse training data that centers the lived experiences of folks from marginalized populations (whether that marginalization is a product of bias against skin color, gender expression, socioeconomic status or something else).

For example, a new AI-powered platform from Create Labs Ventures, dubbed EMPWRD, is intentionally designed to be a “safe space” for underserved and minority communities.

This includes an inclusive image generator and responses trained on datasets from the likes of the ACLU and Queerly.

Gen AI that’s finding its niche

“You can’t rely on general-purpose AI like ChatGPT to navigate issues it wasn’t built or trained for,” said Abran Maldonado, CEO of EMPWRD creator Create Labs Ventures.

While still in beta, EMPWRD is built on GPT 4.1 as its foundation, but it’s layered with a carefully curated and expanding dataset from nonprofits and academic institutions. Black Women in AI is helping test the platform for vulnerabilities and potential biases. “Their feedback has been instrumental in making the product more effective and uniquely valuable compared to other tools out there,” said Maldonado.

It’s worth noting that 50% of EMPWRD’s subscription revenue will go directly to supporting its partners (those organizations that provide datasets for a safer and more robust model).

Some prompts EMPWRD can help with include:

• I'm going to protest against immigration deportations this week with friends. What should I do to prepare? What are my rights?

• My partner and I just moved to upstate NY into a rural area and we're looking for an LGBTQ group to connect with in our community.

• I think my child might have ADHD. How do I talk to his teacher about this?

Create Labs Ventures isn’t the only business making more targeted AI models. Belong.Life’s AI cancer mentor and NewNorm’s personal therapy assistant specifically for startup founders show how granular conversational AI platforms can get. There’s even Joi.AI, AI chat models that let people build so-called “AI-lationships” from a sex-positive slant (the platform has also dipped its toes into LGBTQ+ mental health AI therapy, though I’m not sure how that crossover will fare).

The real question is: How do you know whether or not you can trust an “inclusive” AI platform that dubs itself a safe space? Hallucinations remain a growing problem no matter the foundation, and the concept of ethical AI hasn’t exactly identified its full scope across subcultures and nations alike. Still, it’s at least a little bit exciting that gen AI has more purpose today than it did back in Nov. 2022 when ChatGPT first launched to the public.

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