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The rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) has led to significant innovations but also raised ethical concerns. Researchers and students designed an ethical online game in this study to spread awareness about making informed decisions when using AI and ML. Conducted within a directed research group (DRG) curricular method, the study engages students as co‐researchers to develop a game, from developing ideas to playtesting the game in a class setting. The study employs a quantitative methodology to analyze a survey that 32 students, each with diverse backgrounds and knowledge in game development, conducted after each class session over three semesters. Findings indicate that self‐reported engagement changes depending on the activities done in each session, with students feeling capable of contributing to research and game design. 

Historically, the African American female population has been underrepresented within the STEM workforce, creating non-inclusive environments. The metaphor of getting a seat at the table reflects the idea of inclusivity where Black women’s opinions are valued, and they can make decisions and create change within the workplace. Intersectionality poses several unique challenges for Black women pursuing careers in the video games industry. We motivate further research on this group through existing literature and insights from running a research group on the group design of human-centered data science games in a collaborative university setting. We take an autoethnographic perspective on the topic, with the first and second authors grounding their findings in their own experiences as Black women in STEM and higher education and with video game development studios. We outline tangible actions toward the recruitment, development, and retention of Black women in the video games industry in the future. 

From our smartphones to our social media, artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms are becoming ubiquitous in our everyday lives. However, the conveniences that they bring come alongside many potential social and political harms. It is imperative that members of the public develop data ethics literacy to interpret AI’s harms and benefits daily. The immersive and transformative nature of games may enable a wide range of people to explore complex ethical concepts in AI and data science through the lens of speculative design. In this project, we focus on the learning process of a diverse group of students from two universities as they embark upon a process of game design to teach ethical thinking in data science/AI. Through qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews, we apply a speculative game design framework to identify aspects that aid student learning. 

In this project, we aim to understand the learning process of students from two universities as they collaborate to develop serious video games that address ethical issues in data science, AI, and machine learning using the Directed Research Group model. Looking at the participants, content, and format of the course through the lens of participatory design-based research, aids in centering relations as the goal, keeping fun, or gameplay as the means for building mutual understanding, and through which speculative imagining of the future can be utilized. Students are able to collaborate on research projects, where they can co-design experiments based on their own games and participate in collective meaning-making as a contribution to scholarship. This paper explores the different stages of the course as speculative activity.