DIFFUSED STATES imagines an alternative trajectory for artificial intelligence—one in which computational systems develop through local, small-scale infrastructures rather than centralised corporate platforms. It considers what AI might look like if it evolved through neighbourhood initiatives, recycled consumer hardware, and community-specific datasets, moving at the pace of shared maintenance rather than commercial urgency.

Rooted in histories of low-resource computing and community-run networks, the project repositions AI as a tool for collective experimentation and situated knowledge-making. In this counterfactual history, data is not extracted at scale but circulated within communities, adapting to local needs, languages, and cultural references.

The title reflects several forms of diffusion: the algorithmic process of generating images; the grassroots spread of ideas and tools; and the physical scattering of devices across different environments. The work pairs AI-generated images with non-AI captions to build a fragmented narrative of how such systems might emerge—from informal workshops to self-governed infrastructures and locally trained algorithms.

By working with models that reflect the biases and gaps of their training data, DIFFUSED STATES treats these systems not as definitive or universal but as provisional, adaptable, and open to reinterpretation. In doing so, it explores how AI, even when shaped by structural limitations, can be reimagined as a source of local autonomy, cultural diversity, and collaborative invention.

Diffused States was presented as part of Data Fluencies: Confluence, featuring the work of six contemporary artists—Lai Yi Ohlsen, Lani Asunción, Jazsalyn, Kristoffer Ørum, Caroline Sinders, and Roopa Vasudevan—alongside research from the Reclaim Project (University of Southern California) and the Intersectional Tech Lab (University of Kentucky). The exhibition explored how art can expand our understanding of data and machine learning by centring lived experience, cultural identity, and community-based perspectives, and was on view at The Living Arts & Science Center in Lexington, KY from 6 June to 25 July 2025, with a public reception during Gallery Hop on 18 July 2025.