# Why We Must Not Leave AI to the Western Self | Yehdega Tedros | TEDxKarlsruhe

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxFVVvYbHQk
Recap page: https://rapidrecap.app/video/rxFVVvYbHQk
Generated: 2026-01-12T17:08:00.409+00:00

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## Quick Overview

The speaker argues that Artificial Intelligence (AI) development must incorporate African philosophies like Ubuntu, Sankofa, and Ma'at to ensure AI systems promote justice, interconnectedness, and balance, rather than amplifying existing biases and causing harm, challenging the current Western-centric approach to AI development.

**Key Points:**
- The speaker challenges the current AI development paradigm, which is heavily influenced by Western philosophy, asking, "What If Machines Forget That We Are One?"
- The talk introduces three ancient African philosophies: Ubuntu ("I am because we are"), Sankofa ("Go back and fetch it," learning from the past), and Ma'at ("Truth, balance, justice," cosmic harmony), as necessary correctives for AI.
- The speaker highlights that current AI systems, exemplified by facial recognition failing on darker skin tones and credit scoring bias, carry the philosophy of Western individualism and risk amplifying injustice.
- The core challenge is the gap between knowing these philosophies and embodying them, as AI models trained primarily on Western data risk perpetuating existing societal imbalances.
- The speaker frames the choice as either continuing to code AI based on the past (speed, efficiency) or writing a future that integrates these older, holistic philosophies to ensure AI benefits all of humanity.
- The talk concludes by asking the audience directly, "When will you embody Ubuntu?" emphasizing that AI's future must reflect shared humanity rather than exclusion.

![Screenshot at 00:08: The speaker introduces the central question of the talk with a slide that reads: "What If Machines Forget That We Are One? Why We Can't Leave AI to the Western Self."](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/rxFVVvYbHQk/00-00-08.jpg)

**Context:** Yehdega Tedros delivers this TEDx talk at TEDxKarlsruhe, focusing on the ethical implications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) development, particularly how a lack of diverse philosophical input—specifically African wisdom—leads to biased and harmful technologies. The speaker grounds her argument in personal experience, referencing an early memory in a German kindergarten and the story of her father, to underscore the importance of interconnectedness and shared humanity (Ubuntu) in shaping technology.

## Detailed Analysis

Yehdega Tedros argues that the current development of Artificial Intelligence (AI), predominantly driven by Western philosophical frameworks, risks creating systems that perpetuate inequality and harm, particularly to marginalized groups whose data and experiences are underrepresented. She introduces three African philosophies—Ubuntu ("I am because we are"), Sankofa ("Go back and fetch it"), and Ma'at ("Truth, balance, justice")—as essential counterpoints to the dominant Western individualism coded into current AI. Tedros illustrates the problem using examples like facial recognition failing on darker skin tones and historical data bias in credit scoring, noting that these systems carry the philosophy of competition and efficiency over justice and harmony. She challenges the audience to consider whether the current trajectory, which she calls "burning the planet for speed," is sustainable. The ultimate question posed is whether we will consciously choose to integrate these broader, ancient philosophies into AI development to create systems that reflect the entirety of humanity, ensuring that if one part of the system fails, the whole system is diminished. The final slide asks, "When will you embody Ubuntu?"

### Introduction to Ubuntu

- I am because we are
- Interconnectedness
- Not just a problem but an opportunity

### The Problem with Western AI

- Unseen Skin (face recognition data fails on darker skin tones)
- Model Knowledge (trusting data/information)
- Climate Machine (energy consumption bears the price)

### Three Ancient Philosophies

- Ubuntu: I am because we are (Interconnectedness)
- Sankofa: Go back and fetch it (Learning from your past)
- Ma'at: Truth, balance, justice (Cosmic harmony)

### The Challenge

- Asking if the whole humanity is reflected in AI
- The choice is to code for the past (speed) or write a future of cooperation and belonging

### Conclusion

- When will you embody Ubuntu?
- The answer is no if we only automate the past.

![Screenshot at 00:07: The speaker introduces the concept of Ubuntu, defining it as "I am because we are."](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/rxFVVvYbHQk/00-00-07.jpg)
![Screenshot at 00:08: The first slide displays the talk's central theme: "What If Machines Forget That We Are One?"](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/rxFVVvYbHQk/00-00-08.jpg)
![Screenshot at 01:06: A slide appears listing "Three Ancient Philosophies": Ubuntu, Sankofa, and Wu'af \(Ma'at\).](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/rxFVVvYbHQk/00-01-06.jpg)
![Screenshot at 07:36: A slide titled "Three Broken Algorithms" lists issues like 'Unseen Skin' \(failing face recognition\) and 'Climate Machine' \(energy consumption\).](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/rxFVVvYbHQk/00-07-36.jpg)
![Screenshot at 11:58: The final slide poses the concluding question to the audience: "When will you embody Ubuntu?"](https://ss.rapidrecap.app/screens/rxFVVvYbHQk/00-11-58.jpg)