5.8 KiB
IGF 2026 WS #292 Data work, precarity and the human infrastructure of AI
Description
The hype surrounding the development and adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) systems often masks the significant human and labour rights’ costs embedded in their production. Machine learning, the technology underpinning most AI technologies, depends on the labour of thousands of workers around the world, known as data workers, who perform fragmented and repetitive tasks that are essential for generating, annotating, and evaluating the datasets used to train AI models. Despite being indispensable to the AI supply chain, data work remains largely invisible within digital governance spaces. This session will present findings from the proposer organization's recent research on data work in Latin America, highlighting workers lived experiences alongside public policy recommendations to advance compliance with international labour standards in data work. These findings underscore the need to place labour rights at the center of digital technology governance frameworks. Bringing together speakers from civil society organizations, workers' organizations, academia and the technical sector, the session will explore how the rapid expansion of AI and the growing attention to its governance must be accompanied by greater recognition of the workers who make these technologies possible. It will also examine how technology companies can be held accountable for the labour rights impacts and human costs embedded in the development and deployment of AI systems.
Policy Question(s)
What regulatory and policy mechanisms are needed to ensure that the development and deployment of AI systems comply with international labour standards and human rights throughout the AI supply chain? What transparency and accountability measures across the AI supply chain are needed to ensure compliance with data worker’s rights? How can AI governance processes ensure the meaningful participation of data workers, including through freedom of association and collective bargaining?
Expected Outcomes
By the end of the session, participants will have a deeper understanding of the often-overlooked role of data workers in the AI supply chain and the labour and human rights implications associated with AI development. The discussion will contribute to broadening current AI governance debates by placing the human labour at the center of policy conversations. The session will foster dialogue arround concrete pathways to strengthen the protection of data workers' rights. In particular, participants will identify policy and regulatory priorities to improve transparency, corporate accountability, and labour protections across AI supply chain, while exploring how existing digital governance frameworks can better incorporate decent work principles. The session will inform a blog post to be published on the proposer organization's website, synthesizing the discussion and highlighting public policy recommendations for advancing compliance with labour rights for data workers.
Reference Document
Reference Document
Format
Roundtable Duration (minutes): 60 Format description: The roundtable format is well suited to this session as it brings together representatives from civil society, workers' organizations, academia, and the technical community in a dynamic exchange of perspectives. The 60-minute discussion will be structured around two rounds of guiding questions, encouraging speakers to share their expertise, reflect on the proposer organization's research findings, and engage with one another's perspectives. Through this interactive dialogue, participants will collectively explore policy, regulatory, and corporate accountability mechanisms to ensure that the development and deployment of AI systems uphold labour standards and respect human rights throughout the AI supply chain.
Hybrid Format
Hybrid Format: The session will actively integrate both in-person and online participants through two complementary strategies. First, the session will begin with an interactive activity using a real-time engagement tool, such as Mentimeter, to pose a broad question that introduces participants to the session's central theme. The tool will remain active throughout the discussion, enabling online participants to contribute simultaneously by sharing their reactions and reflections. These contributions will serve as a common input that can be revisited during or at the end of the session. Second, a dedicated space within the videoconferencing platform will remain open throughout the session to receive questions and comments from online participants. The online moderator will collect and prioritize these interventions, ensuring they are incorporated into the discussion and addressed on an equal basis with contributions from participants attending in person.
Organizers
Organizer 1: Laura Mantilla-León, Derechos Digitales NGO Organizer 2: Paloma Lara-Castro, Derechos Digitales
Speakers
Speaker 1: Alexandrine Pirlot de Corbion, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG) Speaker 2: Posada Julian, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) Speaker 3: Jamila Venturini, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) Speaker 4: Fasica Gebrekidan, Technical Community, African Group
Moderator
Jamila Venturini, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Online Moderator
Laura Mantilla-León, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Rapporteur
Ximena Cuzcano, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Participant Benefits
What will participants gain from attending this session?
SDGs
- Decent Work and Economic Growth 8.7 8.8
- Reduced Inequalities 10.2 10.3 10.6
- Responsible Production and Consumption