Algorithms and artificial intelligence systems in/and processes of meaning-making

Abstract

As artificial intelligence systems continue to receive increasing investments and are rapidly developed for applications across various sectors and segments, and as they gain high popularity among the public, their practical use requires restraint, attention, and research. While there are many benefits to their use, we have observed expressions of concern from the scientific community, intellectuals, activists, and collectives regarding the equally harmful potential these computational systems pose to society. Research conducted in different countries has shown how patterns of human behavior involving exclusion and violence, such as practices of racism and sexism, have been replicated in the solutions provided by algorithms across various types of informational services, proving that digital tools and spaces can also be colonial. It has also been observable that the linguistic, textual, and cognitive daily life of most of the global urban population is increasingly being shaped by its interaction with algorithms and AI systems created and maintained by large digital corporations or big techs. In this context, from a critical perspective on the processes of meaning production, this article offers reflections on the subject through experiments and a revisitation of various theoretical frameworks. These frameworks allow for an exploration of discursive, ethical, and structural problematizations as well as social implications of these systems. More specifically, it introduces and shares propositions and research findings in the field of language studies, as documented in the articles submitted for this special issue. These valuable contributions enable us to present the state of the art of ongoing discussions in the field, the theoretical and methodological frameworks being mobilized, and the research corpora and computational systems of greatest interest. More importantly, they allow us to get a deeper understanding into the textual, affective, political, economic, and educational aspects surrounding the production of meaning that takes place through and with algorithms and artificial intelligence systems.