Technology should listen before it speaks.
RootsAI is a nonprofit platform for cultural sovereignty, ethical AI, and intergenerational leadership.
We work alongside Indigenous and underrepresented communities to ensure that the systems shaping our futures are rooted in story, tradition, and consent - not extractive practice.
Technology should listen before it speaks.
RootsAI is a nonprofit platform for cultural sovereignty, ethical AI, and intergenerational leadership.
We work alongside Indigenous and underrepresented communities to ensure that the systems shaping our futures are rooted in story, tradition, and consent - not extractive practice.
Who We Are
RootsAI began with a question: What if technology emerged from the roots — not the cloud?
We are a growing coalition of educators, technologists, cultural workers, and community leaders building the infrastructure for ethical, community-shaped AI.
We believe:
Every language is a living archive.
Every story is a technology.
Every community deserves digital sovereignty.
We don’t build for communities. We build with them — and follow their lead.
Who We Are
RootsAI began with a question: What if technology emerged from the roots — not the cloud?
We are a growing coalition of educators, technologists, cultural workers, and community leaders building the infrastructure for ethical, community-shaped AI.
We believe:
Every language is a living archive.
Every story is a technology.
Every community deserves digital sovereignty.
We don’t build for communities. We build with them — and follow their lead.
Our Mission
To empower Indigenous and underrepresented youth to protect their heritage, preserve their languages, and shape AI in ethical, equitable, and culturally grounded ways.
Our Mission
To empower Indigenous and underrepresented youth to protect their heritage, preserve their languages, and shape AI in ethical, equitable, and culturally grounded ways.
Why Now
AI systems are being deployed faster than communities are being consulted. Without intervention, these tools risk scaling erasure of language and culture.
RootsAI exists to ensure that what gets built reflects the values, languages, and visions of those most often left out — and most often holding the keys to resilient futures.
26
LANGUAGES LOST PER YEAR
<01%
OF AI LANGUAGE MODELS
INCLUDE INDIGENOUS LANGUAGES
80%
OF INDIGENOUS YOUTH SAY CULTURAL
IDENTITY IS KEY TO THEIR FUTURE
80%
OF BIODIVERSITY IS ON
INDIGENOUS-MANAGED LANDS
Why Now
AI systems are being deployed faster than communities are being consulted. Without intervention, these tools risk scaling erasure of language and culture.
RootsAI exists to ensure that what gets built reflects the values, languages, and visions of those most often left out — and most often holding the keys to resilient futures.
26
LANGUAGES LOST PER YEAR
<01%
OF AI LANGUAGE MODELS
INCLUDE INDIGENOUS LANGUAGES
80%
OF INDIGENOUS YOUTH SAY CULTURAL
IDENTITY IS KEY TO THEIR FUTURE
80%
OF BIODIVERSITY IS ON
INDIGENOUS-MANAGED LANDS
Copyright 2025 | The RootsAI Foundation
Where culture shapes technology.