“Ancestral Archives”, a multimedia installation designed to bring Black leaders to virtual worlds and the metaverse, will be exhibited as part of the annual SXSW Art Program from March 10–17 in Austin, Texas.

The AI exhibit, sponsored by Ernst & Young (EY), will feature historical and prominent Black leaders such as James Baldwin, Zora Neale Hurst, Audre Lorde, and Octavia Butler.

EY Metaverse Lab artist-in-residence Josie Williams developed the idea in collaboration with EY and NEW INC (part of the New Museum). She is a creative technologist and afro-futurist who focuses on interactive projects that combat bias, social injustice, and the use of biometrics for mass surveillance.

“I wanted to find out what would happen if the words of Black thought leaders were the only reference point for AI,” Williams said in a statement. “Part of what I am trying to challenge is the default preconception of whose voices are placed into these kinds of systems.”

The installation is built on a generative AI model that enables poetic responses from Baldwin and the other virtual poets to connect with a new generation of critical thinkers, activists and thought leaders.

Visitors will be able to interact with the subjects using a mask avatar informed by West African culture, a statement reads.

“Ancestral Archives will show the meaningful experiences and connections that can be fostered by fusing the metaverse, AI and the arts. I have learned so much working with Josie, and I am thrilled that SXSW audiences will have the opportunity to hear and interact with the stories of these revolutionary Black leaders through this installation,” Domhnaill Hernon, global lead at EY Metaverse Lab, said in a statement.