Feminist and Gender-Inclusive Approaches to Technology: AI, Art and Activism

This event will be a platform for Malaysian and Indonesian tech designers, artists and activists to discuss the rapid advance of digital and AI technology in terms of feminist intersectional and gender-inclusive approaches. One aspect of the discussion will be on how to cope with gender-based hatred and violence while maintaining a joyful feminist focus on pleasure, artistic creativity and digital care. The discussion will also tackle a new generation of Apps and platforms that are highly attractive to youth but also trained unethically on experiments with vulnerable people and databases.

The panel will feature Natalie Loi (UnBound), Dhyta Caturani (PurpleCode Collective), returning panelists Ain Husniza (Pocket of Pink) and Dr Dyah Pitaloka (SEADS). 

Dhyta Caturani is a feminist activist who has been involved in social movements and activism in Indonesia since the 1990s, integrating technology into her work and activism. She founded PurpleCode Collective, a feminist collective that works on the intersectional issues of gender, human rights, and technology in 2015, and is a pioneer in raising awareness about online gender-based violence and initiated the Feminist Internet movement in Indonesia. PurpleCode Collective also established the country’s first and only feminist hacker space. Dhyta was also awarded the Open Tech Fund Fellowship in 2016, and was selected as the Ford Global Leaders Fellow.

Natalie Loi is an award-winning technologist and Head of Technology at UnBound, where she leads groundbreaking innovations in Artificial Intelligence and Smart Cities. Her work has powered national digital transformation initiatives and education systems adopted in Europe, ASEAN, and Latin America. Recognized by the Australian High Commission and Successful People of Malaysia & Singapore, ABC News, and more, Natalie has delivered high-impact solutions for governments, global brands, and public infrastructure, pioneering systems that shape a more intelligent, inclusive, and future-ready world.

Ain Husniza is a 20-year old Malaysian activist and the founder of Pocket of Pink, a feminist initiative combining art, advocacy, and education to empower youth. She is passionate about creating equitable and inclusive educational spaces, advocating for Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE), and addressing sexual abuse and harassment in schools. Ain is also a member of the UNICEF Young People's Action Team for 2025, where she works alongside other young leaders to drive global initiatives and create impactful change for children and youth worldwide. Additionally, Ain collaborates with funds like the Children’s Rights Innovation Fund (CRIF) and We Are Purposeful, contributing to participatory grant making strategies that prioritize marginalized communities. Through these roles, she has co-developed funding pools to support youth-led initiatives globally by championing feminist advocacy and participatory approaches to equal capital and resource distribution.

Dr Dyah Pitaloka was a Fulbright scholar and received her PhD from the University of Oklahoma and has held academic positions at the National University of Singapore and the University of Sydney, Australia. She currently works at Monash University Jakarta and is the SEADS online gender-based violence researcher. Her research explores issues related to social, cultural, political, and policy dynamics of emerging technology, specifically within the context of health and wellbeing, social inequalities, inclusion and exclusion, and justice in communication and media. She has worked on these topics in relation to Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam and Australia.The panel will be moderated by Dr Katrien Jacobs from SEADS.

Katrien Jacobs is associate professor in the School of Arts and Social Sciences at Monash University Malaysia. Jacobs has lectured and published widely about sexuality, gender and sexually explicit media in and around digital media, contemporary arts and online activism. She is currently writing Deepfake Bodies: The Sexual Aesthetics of AI for Bloomsbury Academic. Jacobs is also an artist-scholar who has produced several art works such as documentaries and performance art pieces alongside her academic, curatorial and ethnographic fieldwork. Her work can be found at www.katrienjacobs.com.

Attendance is free via registration, so please RSVP by 6th October 2025. This is an in-person event with no hybrid option.