Who we are
IndigiGenius is an Indigenous-led community focused tech nonprofit whose mission is to increase the representation of Indigenous people in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science in academia and industry.
Our mission is to increase the number of Indigenous professionals working in fields of advanced technology to support the needs and goals of Indigenous communities.
We envision a world where Indigenous people have an ecosystem of tools and data created, controlled, and used by Indigenous people to advance their communities.
IndigiGenius programs bring AI, machine learning, and data science focused computer science. educational opportunities into Indigenous communities.
IndigiGenius works with community leaders to develop culturally informed programs to explore, learn, develop, research, teach others, and see themselves as advanced technology professionals and practitioners.
Problems We’re Solving
Only 67% of American Indian and Alaska Native high school students have access to a computer science course, well below other groups.
In 2020, 22% of the 18–24-year-old Native American population were enrolled in college compared to 40% of the overall U.S. population.
The number of CS graduates averaged 42 bachelors awarded per year from 2011 to 2022, or about 0.11% of the awarded CS PhDs.
The number of CS PhDs. awarded averaged 1.75 awarded per year from 2011 to 2022, or about 0.11% of the awarded CS PhDs.
In addition to educational and economic difficulties, American Indian and Alaska Natives are facing the unique challenges of rapid cultural and language loss. Further, 78% of the 256 languages still spoken in the United States and Canada are endangered. Approximately 48% of languages that existed in the United States and Canada have gone dormant (no longer spoken).