Fair & Responsible Tech

Communities in the Loop.

A community-led AI governance initiative by Measure

In partnership with the Austin AI Alliance and the City of Austin.

Ensuring the communities most impacted by artificial intelligence help shape how it is governed, deployed, and held accountable.

Overview

Civic engagement, applied to AI.

Communities in the Loop is Measure's civic engagement initiative designed to ensure communities help shape how artificial intelligence is governed, deployed, and held accountable.

Using the Measure CARE Model™, the program creates structured spaces where residents, educators, technologists, youth, and historically excluded communities can define what responsible and ethical AI means through lived experience.

2026 Goals

6 community sessions across Austin.

Convenings focused on the questions communities are already asking about AI.

Responsible & Ethical AI

Public Trust & Accountability

Health & AI

Digital Equity

Civic Participation

Current impact

Nearly 400 residents engaged.

Participants across multiple convenings have come from every corner of the civic ecosystem, helping define what responsible AI looks like in practice.

Who's in the room

Youth
Educators
Community leaders
Technologists
Historically excluded communities

Six community priorities

What residents named.

Across sessions, residents consistently surfaced six pillars for responsible AI - the foundation for how communities want technology to show up in their lives.

Transparency

Accountability

Human Oversight

Privacy

AI Literacy

Environmental Justice

Building public trust

Community-led facilitation lowers the barrier.

The initiative demonstrates that community-led facilitation reduces technical barriers and strengthens public trust in emerging technologies - proving that the people most impacted by AI are also the ones best positioned to govern it.

Why it matters

Shifting AI governance from technical conversations to democratic participation.

Communities in the Loop ensures the people most impacted by technology help shape its future.

At Measure, we believe communities should not simply experience AI - they should help govern it.