Program

Welcome to Montreal and thank you for joining us!

We are delighted to welcome you to the DemocrAI’25 Workshop. In this opening session, we will briefly introduce the goals of the workshop, provide an overview of today’s program, and acknowledge the valuable contributions of our speakers, authors, and reviewers. 

The full-day program will feature 2 keynote talks, 5 regular paper presentations, 4 extended abstract talks, and 4 lightning or position talks.

We hope you enjoy a day of engaging discussions and meaningful exchanges at the intersection of AI and democracy

Introduction

–– This session features one keynote talk. The speaker will deliver a 50-minute talk, followed by a 10-minute Q&A session.

  Mary Lou Maher 

University of North Carolina at Charlotte

     Title: The Imperative for AI Literacy

Monday August 18th, 09:10-10:10

Abstract (TBD)

As Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly integrated into society and education, more institutions are implementing AI usage policies and offering introductory AI courses. These courses, however, should not replicate the technical focus typically found in AI courses. This presentation emphasizes the imperative for socio-technical AI literacy for an informed public, workforce, and AI professionals. AI literacy is framed as four cross-cutting pillars. These pillars encompass (1) understanding the scope and technical dimensions of AI technologies,(2) learning how to interact with (Generative) AI technologies, (3) applying principles of critical, ethical, and responsible AI usage, and (4) analyzing implications of AI on society. AI literacy is essential for all as society becomes increasingly affected by AI powered technologies. Providing AI literacy education democratizes access to a critical understanding of the development, use, and impact of AI on society. 

Bio

Dr. Mary Lou Maher is the Director of Research Community Initiatives at the Computing Research Association (CRA). In this role she leads the Computing Community Consortium in research visioning activities. Notable reports include Future of Information Retrieval Research in the Age of Generative AI CCC Workshop Report, The Future of Research on Social Technologies, Community Driven Approaches to Research in Technology & Society CCC Workshop Report. Dr. Maher also leads the LEVEL UP AI hub at CRA to develop consensus and resources for increasing capacity for AI education. Dr. Maher joined CRA after 13 years as Professor in the College of Computing and Informatics at UNC Charlotte . She has held appointments at Carnegie Mellon University, MIT, Columbia University, US National Science Foundation, the University of Maryland, and the University of Sydney. Her research focuses on Artificial Intelligence, Human-Computer Interaction, and CS Education. Her recent research areas include AI-based models of novelty and surprise, evaluating ideation in human-AI co-creativity, human-centered AI interaction design, AI literacy, and personalized learning systems that encourage curiosity. She has authored over 300 publications with an h-index of 63, over 14,000 citations and i10 of 235 using the results from Google Scholar in 2025. 

A complete list of her publications is available on https://sites.google.com/uncc.edu/maryloumaher/publications.

Introduction: 

–– This session features one extended abstract talk. The speaker is expected to deliver a 15-minute presentation, followed by a 5-minute Q&A session.

10:10–10:30

Democratizing and enhancing student participation in online education with LLM-based agent by Jawad Haqbeen, Sofia Sahab, and Takayuki Ito

Morning Coffee Break (provided by IJCAI): Around 10:30–11:00

Introduction: 

     – This session includes four regular paper presentations. Each speaker is expected to give a 25-minute talk, followed by  a 5-minute Q&A session.

11:00–11:30

Finding Our Moral Values: Guidelines for Value System Aggregation by Víctor Abia Alonso, Marc Serramia, and Eduardo Alonso

11:30–12:00

LLMs in Court: Risks and Governance of LLMs in Judicial Decision-Making by Djalel Bouneffouf and Sara Migliorini

12:00–12:30

The Effects of an AI Participant on Online Group Deliberation: Evidence from a Controlled Study with Afghan Youth by Takayuki Ito and Jawad Haqbeen

12:30–13:00

Deep Learning Based Multimodal Human Activity Recognition in Smart Homes Using SDHAR-HOME by Nowayer Alrashidi, Shichao Liu, Takayuki Ito, Jawad Haqbeen, and Alan Ruth

Lunch will not be provided by IJCAI. Please make your own arrangements.

Around 12:30–14:00 

Introduction

–– This session features one keynote talk. The speaker will deliver a 50-minute talk, followed by a 10-minute Q&A session.

  Michael Inzlicht 

University of Toronto

     Title: In Praise of Empathic AI

Monday August 18th, 14:00-15:00

Abstract

As loneliness rises and many people lack the emotional support they need, empathic AI may offer a surprising solution. This talk explores whether artificial agents can deliver empathy that rivals, or even exceeds, that of humans. Across multiple studies, we assess the quality of AI-generated empathy using both third-party evaluations and first-person experiences. Results reveal that AI can provide empathic responses comparable to humans, and sometimes even preferred. Yet despite this promise, people often reject empathic AI. Part of this rejection is driven not by experience but by moralized beliefs about what AI should or should not do. I suggest that while empathic AI has the potential to enhance human welfare, we must tread carefully—resisting both knee-jerk moral opposition and the temptation to outsource too much of our emotional lives to machines.

Bio

Dr. Michael Inzlicht is a Research Excellence Faculty Scholar at the University of Toronto 🇨🇦. His primary appointment is as Professor in the Department of Psychology, but he is also cross-appointed as Professor in the Department of Marketing at the Rotman School of Management. Michael conducts research that sits at the boundaries of social psychology, cognitive science, and neuroscience. Although he has published papers on numerous topics, his current research interests concern work and play. His research on work or effort is mostly on the topics of self-control and motivation, but also includes research on the mentally demanding nature of empathy and compassion. His work on play or leisure is a relatively new direction for Michael and includes research on social media, puzzles (e.g., crosswords, Sudoku), and recreational drug use.

Michael completed his B.Sc. in Anatomical Sciences at McGill University in 1994, his Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology at Brown University in 2001, and his postdoctoral fellowship in Applied Psychology at New York University in 2004. He has published more than 150 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters and edited two books. His work has been featured in media outlets around the world, including The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, BBC News, TIME, The Daily Telegraph, and the CBC, among many others. His research and teaching have been recognized with the Wegner Theoretical Innovation Prize, the SPSSI Louise Kidder Early Career Award, the Ontario government's Early Researcher Award, the ISCON Best Social Cognition Paper Award, the Principal's Research Award (University of Toronto Scarborough), and the UofT Scarborough Professor of the Year Award.

Introduction: 

     – This session features one regular paper presentation. The speaker is expected to give a 25-minute talk, followed by a 5-minute Q&A session.

15:00–15:30

Democracy as a scaled collective intelligence process: points of vulnerability and augmentation by Marc-Antoine Parent

Afternoon Coffee Break (provided by IJCAI): Around 15:30–16:00

Introduction: 

     – This session includes four extended paper presentations. Each speaker is expected to give a 15-minute talk, followed by a 5-minute Q&A session.

16:00–16:20

An LLM-based Comparison of Social Choice Methods to Synthesize Human Preferences by Salim Hafid

16:20–16:40

Group Discussions Are More Positive with AI Facilitation: Evidence from VADER Sentiment Analysis by Sofia Sahab, Jawad Haqbeen, and Takayuki Ito

16:40–17:00

African Female Authorship in Artificial Intelligence Research: A Scopus-based Bibliometric Study by Houcemeddine Turki, Sakinat Folorunso, Bonaventure F. P. Dossou, and Fatimah Salami

Introduction: 

     – This session includes four lighting talks. Each speaker is expected to give a 8-minute talk, followed by  a 2-minute Q&A session.

17:00–17:10

Balancing Exploration and Exploitation in Immigration Selection: A Case for the Epsilon-Greedy Approach by Djalel Bouneffouf

17:10–17:20

Competitive Trap of AI Governance: How Can We Prevent Erosion of Human Wellbeing in the Age of Artificial General Intelligence? by Shun Shiramatsu

17:20–17:30

Algorithmic Modeling of the Rule of Law: Toward Democratic Accountability Through Simulation by Mohamed Ben Achour

17:30–17:40

A Study on Complex Matching of AI Agents Based on Designed Utility by Shun Okuhara, Takayuki Ito, and Gaozhi Xiao

17:40–17:59

This session will include closing remarks, the announcement of award winners, and a group photo to conclude the workshop. 

The award categories are as follows:

• Best Paper Award (Full/Regular)

• Best Extended Abstract Award

• Best Presentation Award (any type)

• Best Student Paper Award (any type)

18:00

End of Workshop