Meet the community: Abdo Hassan
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It’s the time of the month to meet another community member! This month, let us introduce you to Abdo, our project lead for Everyday Data (H)activism.
AIxD: Hi Abdo! Really nice to get to chat with you this month! I know that you have been up to many exciting projects so why don’t you share a little bit about yourself and your background with our subscribers?
Abdo: My name is Abdelrahman (Abdo) Hassan, and I’m a creative technologist, data practitioner, and poet.
Originally from Egypt, I was inspired massively by the January 2011 revolution and how it prompted an interplay between technical and social systems. I'm now based in Amsterdam, working full-time on the interdisciplinary practice of responsible AI.
Over time, it became clear that data-driven systems aren't only becoming omnipresent but also increasingly invasive and extractive. My background in critical theory made it clear that there are power imbalances that are often amplified by technological systems. Decoding harm and decolonizing technology then aren’t just technical tasks, but rather outcomes of a shared choreography. I then work at the intersection of tech, design, literacy, and play to create this shared choreography. I love working within both academia and industry since my overarching mission is to bridge the theory and practice of data work.
AIxD: That’s really fascinating. Love your remark on a delicate balance and choreography between decoding harm and decolonizing tech. I wonder if there’s any project that you are working on at the moment that touched upon a similar topic?
Abdo: My next project is with AIxDesign, called Everyday Data (H)activism.
In this project, I would like to invite the community of data practitioners/designers/researchers to curate with me ways that would enable the public to engage in more responsible data practices. We’re often reactive as data consumers, unaware of how invasive technologies shape our everyday. The project aims to provide a playful manual for individuals to fight back against information asymmetries.
AIxD: For those who are reading, stay tuned for more updates on the project! As a project lead, I wonder what you find interesting at the AIxDesign crossover?
Abdo: AIxDesign is a much-needed crossover between the technical and human sides of Artificial intelligence. We’re living in a time where the adoption of AI is skyrocketing, only to realize that the tech isn’t as innocent as we once thought. Technical systems never operate in a vacuum. There has been an ever-increasing gap between people who build tech, those that design it, and those affected by it. Platforms like AIxDesign provide fertile ground to fill in those gaps, allowing for data work to be a communal world-building practice.
My collaboration with AIxDesign is an intuitive evolution of my practice and a continuation of an earlier project I worked on called Atlas of Algorithmic (in)Equality.
AIxD: Absolutely. As technology becomes more democratized, we will need to provide the platform for conversations like these and connect like-minded people together. Is there any technology or tool you have been using or are excited about?
Abdo: I try to be tool-agnostic as much as possible, but one technology I’ve recently worked with is Augmented Reality using Snap AR.
I collaborated with Imagination of Things on a Poetic AR project, where we worked with poets on turning some of their poetic expressions into playful experiences. In the process, we were able to explore shifting identities, create new senses of space, and create meaning.
I find that one of the biggest dilemmas in the field is finding a critical language that allows us to subvert dominant structures. Think of an AR piece that exposes alternate histories of space, or one which helps us explore shifting identities or connections to a colonial past.
I love when tech is used in a way that is beyond solutionist; to show us that different futures are ultimately possible. I often think of Responsible Tech as not only a deconstructive practice but also a constructive and innovative one.
AIxD: To close our chat, could you share one book that has strongly influenced you or that you would recommend to our readers?
Abdo: It's hard to pick one, but it would be a mix of “Data Feminism” by Catherine D’Ignazio and Lauren Klein and “Psychopolitics: Neoliberalism and New Technologies of Power” by Byung-Chul Han.
AIxD: Thank you for taking the time to share with our readers. We can’t wait for Everyday Data H(activism) program to begin and are looking forward to sharing the knowledge collaboratively developed during the program
About AIxDesign
AIxDesign is a place to unite practitioners and evolve practices at the intersection of AI/ML and design. We are currently organizing monthly virtual events, sharing content, exploring collaborative projects, and developing event programs.
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