Origins
The initiative was conceived in Ecuador in late 2024 by Horacio Correa Lucero. Cheryl Martens, at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Inequalities, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, supported its early development and institutional articulation. Diversa participated during the foundational stage, connecting academic research, technical capabilities, and civil society. In 2026, LASTLab consolidated its internal organisational instruments and its multinodal structure across Ecuador and Argentina.
Mission
To produce rigorous, critical, situated knowledge about artificial intelligence and digital technologies; investigate their social, political, economic, cultural, epistemic, and environmental dimensions; strengthen research and practical capacities; and contribute to the design, evaluation, regulation, and implementation of sociotechnical alternatives guided by social justice.
Vision
To become a Latin American reference point with international reach in critical research, specialised education, and strategic proposals on AI and digital technologies, connecting knowledge communities and contributing to public and technological decision-making.
Approach
The Lab combines philosophy, social sciences, science and technology studies, and technical analysis. Its methods make visible relationships among power, design, data, labour, infrastructure, and territories, and support participatory experimentation, collective learning, and the development of alternatives.