Chao Tayiana Maina

IAS Annual Theme: AI:Facts, Fictions, Futures

Founder of African Digital Heritage and Co-Founder of the Museum of British Colonialism, Kenya

Chao Tayiana Maina is a Kenyan digital heritage specialist and digital humanities scholar working at the intersection of culture and technology. Her work primarily focuses on the application of technology in the preservation, engagement and dissemination of African heritage.

She is the founder of African Digital Heritage, a co-founder of the Museum of British Colonialism and a co-founder of the Open Restitution Africa project. She holds an MSc International Heritage Visualisation (distinction) and a BSc Mathematics and Computer Science. Her research work explored the possibilities of embedding intangible histories in 3D digital environments.

She is a recipient of the Google Anita Borg scholarship for women in technology. Her work has been featured in Reuters, DW, BBC news, BBC Arts, The Art forum, the Art Newspaper among other publications.