Beyond the Metrics: The Role of Tech & Data Collection in Understanding Community Lived Experiences
How do we uncover the unknowns and in-betweens of community life — the subtle experiences, invisible burdens, and everyday decisions that rarely show up in surveys or development dashboards? How can A.I. and emerging technologies help surface these deeper layers of lived experience and inform more inclusive, responsive policymaking?
This panel discussion brings together practitioners working at the intersection of technology, social impact, and field research to explore how A.I.-driven data collection, participatory tools, and human-centered design can strengthen our understanding of rural and underserved communities. The session will examine gaps in current development models, challenges in rural data and survey practices, and the opportunities — and limits — of advanced technologies in shaping better policy and program decisions.
Speakers from Fields of View, IDInsight, and Ooloi Labs will share insights from their work on poverty and vulnerability modeling, household decision-making, and narrative-based community understanding, and discuss what it takes to build empathetic, ethical, and accessible technology rooted in real community realities.
This discussion is open to technologists, researchers, policymakers, development practitioners, designers, students, and social impact professionals interested in the future of tech-for-good in India.
Host venue supported by Startup Tumakuru and IDFC First Bank.
Event Structure:
• Opening Remarks & Context Setting – 10–15 min
• Panel Discussion – 40–45 min
• Audience Q&A – 20–30 min
• Informal Networking – 25–30 min
• Closing Remarks – 5–10 min