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In the Spotlight - Meet Ajuna Soerjadi
At Women in AI we’d like to inspire others by featuring female role models that are making a difference in AI. We aim to empower women who are working in AI by highlighting their success stories. This way we hope to inspire other women and girls to get into STEM-related fields. In our series ‘In the Spotlight’ we shine a light on an expert in the field and today we’d like you to meet Ajuna Soerjadi.
Author: Ingrid van Heuven van Staereling.
About Ajuna
Ajuna is 24 years old and has a background in philosophy. She specializes in the ethics and political philosophy of data, technology and AI. “I work specifically on algorithmic injustice, the way that inequality is cemented and continued by the use of data that reflects societal inequalities.” Ajuna has been doing that from different roles. She founded Expertisecentrum Data-Ethiek 4 years ago, and has also been a privacy officer, a researcher at the State Commission against Discrimination and Racism and a diversity and inclusion ambassador for ECHO. You can tell she has a true passion for what she does. “I have been passionate about justice since a very young age and chose philosophy as my major because it allowed me to put into words what certain marginalized groups of people cannot.”
As a woman of color she has experienced what it is like to be excluded. “Yet I feel like I am also in a privileged position due to my education level, my ability to speak Dutch etc.” -she explains. That is exactly why she took it as her responsibility to put it to good use! While she keeps herself occupied with the many roles she has taken, she also finds time to spend on other things that keep her happy and fulfilled: “In my free time I also like to cook, play piano, violin, tennis, kung fu, and chess and I have two lovely cats who are always ready to cuddle.” It is undoubtedly clear she is a woman who has many layers and knows how to put this into use in both her work and private life.
The Deeper Lying Questions in AI
When she was as young as 17, she was elected as Young Thinker of the Fatherland. Around that time she also won the national philosophy olympiad. This gave her many opportunities to speak at conferences and to publish articles. It was a great way to spread the word about the work that she does: “Every time I was on stage, I made sure to speak on algorithmic justice. I also wrote my bachelors and masters thesis on it.” The latter was awarded with an astonishing 9,5 and it spoke about the way automated risk profiling entrenches structural injustice in the Netherlands. Import topics that surely deserved this recognition.
“When I was 19 I founded the Expertisecentrum Data-Ethiek which is both a knowledge platform where people can stay up to date with data ethics related news in the Netherlands (www.dataethiek.info) and it is also a cooperation that offers training and education on the ethical aspects of AI.” What is special about her approach is that while she has an interdisciplinary background (both in philosophy as well as AI and a law-based minor), she approached this subject predominantly from a philosophy perspective. “I make people think about the deeper lying questions that often get overlooked.” Things like; ‘What makes the difference between wrongful discrimination and justified different treatment?’ and ‘Can AI still lead to wrongful discrimination when it is based on accurate statistics?’
Other than the expertisecentrum, she works as a researcher Risk Profiles and Discrimination which has a huge impact on Dutch policy around risk profiles. “My research will prevent them from being able to indirectly discriminate based on proxy data that correlates with migration background.” She happily shares the knowledge she has by doing guest lectures at universities and conferences. “I am a diversity and inclusion ambassador for ECHO, and I wrote a comprehensive book on the ethics of Generative AI which is entirely available for free.” Ajuna has also done a TEDx Talk on AI and keti koti. These are just several examples of the many more public performances, newspaper articles and interviews she has done. All of which has inevitably led to an immense growth in awareness and more conscious decision making around ethics and AI in the Netherlands.
"When organizations buy or decide on AI systems, they are not just impacting their own organization, but also the rest of the world.”
Tackling Issues of Global Injustice
One thing she always tries to highlight in her public performances is the harmful impact AI can have on global justice. “Globally, there are fundamental problems such as the fact that AI is often heavily reliant on the exploitation of labor, environmental degradation and the destruction of self-sufficient communities.” Ajuna explains how the labor that people perform to make AI possible, such as the labeling or cleaning of data, or monitoring traumatizing content is often underpaid and undervalued. “These issues of global injustice remain intact and can even be worsened by improving AI, because it may increase consumer demand and uphold a system that worsens global inequality in itself.”
It is the bigger picture Ajuna very much tries to address. “I highlight these issues because it helps to make sure that when organizations buy or decide on AI systems, they are not just impacting their own organization but also the rest of the world.” She acknowledges that people are generally not aware that when they enter a prompt in ChatGPT, it is also having an effect on water usage, Co2 and other factors. “These are the things that they themselves may not carry the harm of, but others do.” Ajuna believes that educating people and demystifying AI in this way is crucial in making better decisions on a global scale.
Being Part of the WAI Awards
Due to her amazing efforts mentioned above, Ajuna has become a part of the top 5 Nominees of Responsible AI Leader of the Women in AI Benelux Awards. The Women in AI Awards celebrates remarkable women who are making an impact on shaping the future of AI. Their expertise and unique perspectives are driving innovation. Women like Ajuna are committed to leading the future of AI. Would you like to learn more about the Award nominees and what they have done? Join us on November 15 from 13:30 to 20:00 at the Women in AI Summit, where our Top 5 nominees will be officially presented. The event will celebrate 30 outstanding women in AI who are making a significant impact across the Benelux region.