By Gofaone Motsamai
As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes how knowledge is created, shared and verified, questions are being raised about data use and bias, and whether it could be replicating Western biases and global gender disparities.
As AI systems learn to learn, they also force institutions to reconsider their role in shaping future professionals. This is why the Faculty of Humanities at the North-West University (NWU) hosted a public lecture on 8 May 2025 focusing on AI and the future of humanities education in higher education institutions. The event at Mmabatho Palms Hotel was also streamed online.
Professor Hopeton S Dunn, a scholar in communications policy from the University of Botswana, delivered the lecture titled “AI, ethics and the challenge to higher education globally”. In his address, Prof Dunn outlined the social, economic and political implications of AI and its relevance to institutions in the Global South.
Is new technology replicating old biases?
He explained that AI systems are trained using data and raised questions about the sources of that data. “What data sources are the systems being trained on? Do they replicate the Western biases and global gender disparities that we have become familiar with?” he asked.
Prof Dunn warned that AI development could reinforce existing global inequalities. “AI puts us at what I have called the risk of a new colonialism,” he said. “There’s a risk that AI is already replicating global disparities and could generate a new round of dominance, neo-colonial dominance, and subject us to the control of big data.”
He also addressed the potential for AI to increase productivity in various sectors but cautioned about its impact on employment and the labour market. While citing a report estimating that AI could add up to $4.4 trillion to the global economy, he emphasised that regions such as Africa must not be excluded from this growth.
Checking facts is more important than ever
Calling for policy interventions, public education and regulation to manage the challenges associated with AI, Prof Dunn noted the importance of data verification in communication and media. “We are committed by ethical rules to provide the public with the truth… then we have to do data verification,” he said.
Discussing the challenges of facial recognition and deepfake technologies, linking them to identity, security and public trust, he referred to developments in the European Union. These include the Artificial Intelligence Act of 2023, which categorises AI applications by levels of risk and sets restrictions accordingly.
He urged the audience to adopt AI technologies with awareness and caution. “Let us adopt AI technologies to meet the opportunities of our time while enacting sensible guardrails for consumer protection, for data privacy, for cyber security and for the protection of humanity as a whole,” he concluded.
Professor Hopeton Dunn, a scholar from the University of Botswana, delivered a public lecture hosted by the faculty of Humanities
