In 2018, Lucas LaRochelle launched Queering the Map, a digital mapping project to collect and display LGBTQ+ stories and experiences worldwide. They have since created QT.bot, an Artificial Intelligence platform trained on textual and visual data from Queering the Map, that generates speculative queer and trans narratives and the environments in which they occur.

And on October 18, we were joined by Lucas for a virtual talk in our Design Justice series moderated by Jeremiah Long. They discussed questions and issues related to Queering the Map and QT.bot, such as:

• Why use fictional stories when discussing groups of people who have been ignored or left out of historical records?

• What can AI teach us about dealing with the confusion and chaos created by traumatic events?

• How can dissociation, detachment, and disconnection help us imagine new worlds?

About Jeremiah Long

Jeremiah Long is an Atlanta based artist, futurist, developer, and data driven creative entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in computer science and media production.

He grew up in Section 8 housing with a single mom and saw the impact of technology education early on. After a career in media production and nonprofit product development, he co-founded of Wedge, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Atlanta, Georgia.

Wedge’s goal is to impact under-resourced communities where emerging technology can make a near term impact on quality of life, career opportunities, voting rights, education, and accessibility.

His recent programming includes generative AI storytelling and AI Art creation workshops with partners including Microsoft, Museum of Design Atlanta, Citizen Advocacy of Atlanta and Dekalb, Fulton County Arts and Culture, Atlanta Public Schools, and community groups including American and African Advocacy Gathering.

Connect with Jeremiah on Instagram.

About Lucas LaRochelle

Lucas LaRochelle is a designer and researcher whose work is concerned with queer and trans digital cultures, community-based archiving, and artificial intelligence. They are the founder of Queering The Map, a community generated counter-mapping project for digitally archiving LGBTQ2IA+ experience in relation to physical space.

Their project, QT.bot, was awarded an Honorary Mention for the 2023 Prix Ars Electronica in the Artificial Intelligence and Life Art category. Their project, Queering The Map, was awarded an Honorary Mention for the 2018 Prix Ars Electronica in the Digital Communities category, nominated for the Lumen Prize for Digital Art and the Kantar Information is Beautiful Awards, and is included in the Library of Congress LGBTQ+ Studies Web Archive.

Their work has been written about and featured in The New York Times, Dezeen, I-D, Paper, AIGA Eye on Design, C Magazine, de Volkskrant, CityLab, MIT’s Immerse, CBC Arts, VICE, Vogue, The Hindu and El Espectador amongst others.

Find Lucas' website here!