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2026 AI Research Fieldwork StartedLive Progress →

Global Youth
Tech Assembly

A global youth assembly on emerging tech: listening, acting, and being heard. Starting with AI.

A hub-led coalition connecting local youth experiences with shared research, regional action and dialogue. Our first initiative explores how AI is changing everyday life.

Open the hub portalTake English Survey

Already participating? Find hubs, share capabilities and coordinate the work.

120 hubs listed · 49 countries & territories

102 hubs confirmed · registration open on a rolling basis · about 8 minutes · 8 regions

8 regions · 120 hubs listed · yours is open

2026 AI Research Fieldwork · Underway•Started 20 September 2026

Research in Motion: Listening to Global Youth on AI

Fieldwork officially launched on 20 September 2026. Across the global network, participating hubs are gathering authentic youth perspectives, educator dialogues, and local examples of artificial intelligence in everyday life.

Submissions
471

Consenting; 442 aged 18–30

Countries
30

Worldwide reach

World Regions
8 / 8

Regions represented

Cities (5+)
20

Residence or collecting-hub groups

Explore Live ProgressTake English SurveyRead AI Research Guide

Current work: 2026 AI research

Fieldwork: 20 September to 31 October 2026. Hub materials are due through Regional Leads by 14 November.

Live ProgressCoordinate in the hub portal

The 2026 AI Initiative

Shared questions:
real local experiences.

How is AI being experienced, discussed, governed and responded to locally, and how well do institutions help young people navigate those changes?

Explore Live Progress dashboard →Read the AI Research GuideTake English surveyRegister your regional survey

For research participants aged 18–30, separate from hub registration. Use the central English survey for English responses; do not create English duplicates. For translated regional surveys, preserve the shared core questions and register the form link so Regional Leads can coordinate coverage. Keep response access restricted to the authorised research team.

50 responses
target per hub, 25 minimum, from local youth aged 18–30 inside and outside Global Shapers
3+ interviews
one youth aged 18–30, one educator or researcher, and one institutional stakeholder with no age limit
Local evidence
observations, examples and interview notes, with English translations alongside originals where needed
Local language
use the central survey for English; register translated regional forms and preserve the shared core questions

The research timeline

  1. 20 Sep–31 Oct 2026

    Fieldwork

    Survey local youth, conduct interviews and gather examples. Regional Leads check progress and whose perspectives may be missing.

  2. 14 Nov 2026

    Submit and check

    Regional Leads consolidate raw survey responses, interview materials and insights for the core research team, checking completeness and each hub’s progress.

  3. 12 Dec 2026

    Pilot one-pager

    The planned first publication brings together early findings. A second one-pager is planned for Q1 2027.

  4. June 2027

    Final report

    The planned final report brings the cross-hub findings together in time for the Annual Summit.

AI in society, grounded in local contexts rather than a representative census. Areas of experience include:

worklearninginformation & truthrights & powereveryday life

You do not need to be a research expert. Use the shared questions in your local language, capture authentic experiences, and keep direct evidence distinct from interpretation and uncertainty. Add 1–3 optional local questions to interviews; discuss any survey additions with coordination first.

The State of AI in Society, written by us.

A youth-authored synthesis of surveys, interviews and local examples from participating hubs. It will describe patterns, differences and evidence gaps without claiming to represent all young people.

Fieldwork opens 20 September and feedback closes 31 October 2026. A pilot one-pager is planned for 12 December, a second for Q1 2027, and the final report for June 2027.

What it is

Local experience. Shared evidence. Youth-led action.

01

Listen

In the 2026 AI Initiative, hubs collect youth surveys, three kinds of interviews, and local examples of how AI is landing.

02

the centre of gravity

Act

Reps organise into regional assemblies that turn findings into real projects, dialogues and partnerships.

03

Amplify

Once a year it assembles globally, and the shared picture is carried to the rooms where technology is decided.

Research grounds the wider mission: regional action, dialogue and partnerships.

What we strive for

  • Real conversations about how technology, starting with AI, is landing in your city.
  • A seat in your regional assembly and the global one.
  • A hand in a real project, dialogue or partnership.
  • Your perspective published in a youth-authored read we carry to real decision makers.

What we won't pretend

We can't promise a politician acts on it, or guarantee a project in every region each year. We can build a shared evidence base, report its limits, and use it to inform regional action and dialogue.

How it's organised

Two axes, assembled into one global voice.

Geographic

Regional assemblies

Reps group into the eight Global Shapers regions, each led by an elected Regional Lead: they drive the local action.

Cross-cutting

Thematic pods

Three pods deepen the themes and feed the synthesis: Use cases · Contestation · Social Opinion & Trends.

Once a year

The Global Assembly

Regions and pods convene as one body to adopt the shared picture, set priorities, and elect.

8
regional
assemblies

Eight regional assemblies · one global voice

Hubs listed per region, including interest only

The impact engine

From shared evidence to practical action.

Projects

Help hubs develop technology projects tied to regional priorities and explore relevant funding opportunities.

Dialogues

Aim for regional dialogues that bring young people together with policymakers, regulators or industry.

Partnerships

Broker regional partners to carry the work onward: tech firms, civil society, universities.

The ambition is practical regional action, informed by what hubs learn locally. Projects, dialogues and partnerships depend on regional priorities, capacity and partners; the current shared work is the 2026 AI research initiative.

Existing hub work

Examples of participating hubs’ own work, verified in August 2026. These are not results delivered by the Assembly.

Vienna, Austria

kAIros

An AI-literacy and digital-humanism event series. Public editions took place in November 2025 and April 2026.

Read the kAIros source

Jaipur, India

GramIN

Documented as an early-stage rural digital-inclusion project in August 2026, focused on inclusive technology access and digital literacy. No delivered reach is claimed here.

Read the GramIN source

The impact pathway

A synthesis is only as useful as where it goes. Its reach is built, not assumed: determined by the partnerships established and the content published, with a dedicated advocacy function securing and following up real recipients.

Partnerships established

Regional and global partners broker the work into the convenings where it can land: technology firms, civil society, universities.

Content published

The youth-authored synthesis is shared back to every hub and put in front of real recipients: openly published, clearly labelled as youth perspective.

Whose initiative is it

Hub-led, with a lean coordinating team.

Year 1: bootstrap

A lean Geneva core team gets it off the ground, and helps the first regional assemblies and pods find their feet.

Year 2: you elect

Every role opens to a vote by active reps at the Global Assembly: core team, Regional Leads, Pod Leads.

Lean centre, strong regions, no empire building.

In plain terms

A hub-led, opt-in coalition within the Global Shapers Community. It holds no official authority, issues no official positions, and speaks for no institution. Its outputs are youth perspectives, clearly labelled as such: nothing it publishes binds any institution.

The annual Global Assembly

  • Adopts the youth-authored State of AI in Society.
  • Sets the cross-regional priorities for the year.
  • Hands it to incoming Regional Leads for regional debriefs.
  • Elects every role for the year ahead.

The standing Global Council

Year-round coordination by the 8 Regional Leads + 3 Pod Leads + the central core team. Regions and themes sit in one body, so cross-regional patterns get spotted and shared, not siloed.

Questions

The honest answers.

Is this only about AI?

No: it's emerging tech, broadly. AI is the Year 1 focus because it's the live issue. Recent issues will be evaluated and topics raised that impact young people most.

What's the time commitment?

For the current AI initiative, each hub aims for 50 youth survey responses, with 25 minimum, and at least three interviews: a young person, an educator or researcher, and an institutional stakeholder. Hubs also gather local examples and submit their materials through Regional Leads. The time needed depends on local outreach and interview arrangements.

Who can join, and who's the rep?

Any hub. One rep, nominated by the Curator, and that can be the Curator. Small or new hubs are welcome; one motivated rep is enough.

What language do we work in?

Collect evidence in the language your participants use. When translation is needed, submit English translations alongside the original material, as set out in the AI Research Guide. Coordinate language support with your Regional Lead.

What do we actually get?

A way to contribute local perspectives, connect with participating hubs, and build interview and synthesis skills. Regional projects, dialogues and partnerships are ambitions that depend on capacity and partners, not guaranteed outcomes.

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