As artificial intelligence reshapes education, employment, creativity, and digital communication, AI4ALL and the All Tomorrows Institute are introducing a new initiative designed to bring youth perspectives into the center of the AI policy and ethics conversation. The organizations have launched [DEFINE]: Our AI Futures Archive, a public collection of essays, poetry, audio stories, films, and visual art created by young adults reflecting on how AI is influencing their lives and their vision of the future.
The archive, available at defineouraifutures.com, debuts with 15 original works from contributors across the United States. Unlike traditional surveys or academic research projects, the initiative allows participants to choose the creative medium that best represents their experience with artificial intelligence.
The launch arrives at a moment when governments, technology companies, and educators are debating how AI systems should be developed, regulated, and integrated into daily life. Much of that discussion has focused on model performance, safety, productivity gains, and economic disruption. The DEFINE Archive attempts to address a different question: How do young people who are growing up alongside AI understand its impact on identity, creativity, work, and belonging?
According to AI4ALL and the All Tomorrows Institute, several themes have emerged across the inaugural collection. Contributors explore what remains uniquely human in an era of generative AI, whether AI systems recognize the value of lived experience, who should be accountable when automated systems cause harm, and how environmental concerns intersect with digital technologies.
The works approach these issues through personal narratives rather than abstract policy arguments. One contributor examines whether creativity retains its meaning when AI tools participate in the creative process. Another frames AI through the experience of immigration and cultural belonging. Others focus on language, education, employment, trust, identity, and environmental responsibility.
That emphasis on lived experience distinguishes the project from many current AI governance initiatives, which are often driven by policymakers, researchers, and technology companies. The archive is intended as a qualitative record of how young adults choose to describe their relationship with AI, rather than a representative statistical sample of public opinion.
The initiative is supported by a $300,000 grant from the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, a philanthropic organization that has invested heavily in AI and data-driven social impact projects. The funding is intended to support a broader national storytelling effort that will continue accepting submissions through September 7, 2026, with additional works published on a rolling basis.
Bo Young Lee, CEO of AI4ALL, said the project was designed to shift attention from the technology itself to the people who will inherit its long-term consequences.
“Too often, conversations about AI focus solely on the technology itself,” Lee said. “DEFINE is about centering the people who will inherit and shape this future.”
Dylan Thomas Doyle, executive director of the All Tomorrows Institute, described the archive as a form of “future-making,” arguing that storytelling can become a mechanism for public participation in technological change.
The project arrives as major AI developers—including OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, and Meta—face increasing scrutiny over transparency, safety, copyright, labor impacts, and the societal effects of generative AI systems. Regulators in the European Union, the United States, and other jurisdictions are also expanding efforts to establish rules governing high-impact AI applications.
In that context, initiatives that capture public sentiment—particularly among younger generations—may become increasingly relevant. Generation Z and younger millennials are among the first cohorts to encounter AI tools throughout their education, social lives, and early careers. Their experiences differ from those of older generations that adopted AI technologies later in life.
Research suggests that younger people are both heavy users of AI tools and more likely to encounter their consequences directly. According to McKinsey & Company, generative AI could affect a substantial share of current work activities, with knowledge-intensive and creative tasks among those most exposed to automation and augmentation. Pew Research Center has also documented growing public concern about the impact of AI on jobs, misinformation, privacy, and human decision-making.
The DEFINE Archive does not attempt to resolve those debates. Instead, it provides a platform for documenting how young adults are already interpreting them in their own words.
For enterprise leaders, educators, and technology developers, the initiative offers a reminder that AI adoption is not solely a technical or operational challenge. User trust, cultural context, identity, and perceptions of fairness can significantly influence how AI systems are received in schools, workplaces, and communities.
That has become increasingly important as organizations deploy generative AI assistants, automated decision systems, and AI-powered productivity tools at scale. Understanding how younger users perceive authorship, accountability, and human agency may help inform product design, governance frameworks, and communication strategies.
The archive also points to a broader trend in AI governance: the growing role of participatory and community-centered approaches. Alongside technical safety research, there is increasing interest in incorporating perspectives from students, workers, artists, immigrants, and other groups whose experiences may not be captured by benchmark evaluations or policy white papers.
AI4ALL has long focused on expanding access to AI education and increasing diversity in the field, while the All Tomorrows Institute works on storytelling and future-oriented civic engagement. The DEFINE initiative sits at the intersection of those missions, combining AI literacy with creative expression and public participation.
The current archive is only the first phase of the project. In addition to ongoing submissions, selected contributors are expected to appear in a documentary project scheduled to premiere later in 2026.
Whether the archive ultimately influences policy discussions remains to be seen. But its launch underscores a growing recognition across the AI ecosystem: the future of artificial intelligence will not be shaped only by engineers, regulators, and investors, but also by the generation that will live with these systems for decades to come.
Market Landscape
Public participation is becoming a larger part of the AI governance landscape. As generative AI adoption accelerates across education, work, and creative industries, organizations are increasingly seeking input from affected communities rather than relying solely on technical evaluations.
- McKinsey & Company estimates that generative AI could automate or augment a significant share of current work activities, making workforce adaptation a central policy issue.
- Pew Research Center has found that Americans express both excitement and concern about AI, particularly regarding employment, misinformation, privacy, and human oversight.
Major technology companies—including OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, and Meta—are simultaneously expanding consumer AI products and investing in AI safety, transparency, and responsible deployment initiatives.
Top Insights
- AI4ALL and the All Tomorrows Institute launched a public archive featuring youth-created essays, films, audio stories, poetry, and visual art about artificial intelligence and society.
- The inaugural collection includes 15 works from contributors across the United States, emphasizing lived experience rather than survey-based measurement of public opinion.
- Contributors explore creativity, identity, immigration, education, work, environmental responsibility, and accountability for AI systems through deeply personal storytelling.
- The initiative is backed by a $300,000 grant from the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and positions youth voices as a meaningful input into AI governance discussions.
- Submissions remain open through September 7, 2026, with additional works and a documentary project planned for release later this year.
Power Tomorrow’s Intelligence — Build It with TechEdgeAI
