CS547 Human-Computer Interaction Seminar   (Seminar on People, Computers, and Design)

Fridays 11:30am-12:30pm PT · Gates B3 · Open to the public
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Nava Haghighi
Stanford University
Toward Ontological Multiplicity in AI and Computing
May 15, 2026

What we imagine possible shapes what we design and build, and what gets designed and built shapes what we imagine possible. This recursive loop happens in part because to design and build any system, one must draw ontological boundaries -- boundaries that define the nature of what is. Every cycle of design and development that assumes the same boundaries reinforces them as a given rather than a choice, making other boundaries and the worlds in which they exist difficult to imagine. As AI systems proliferate, this limitation becomes more consequential because their embedded assumptions risk foreclosing alternative futures before they can be imagined. Although the discourse around narrowing of possibilities is not new, systematic methods for translating such critiques into practice remain elusive. This gap persists in part because critique typically occurs after systems are deployed, leading to patchwork fixes that address symptoms without addressing the foundational assumptions that frame the problem definition. Combining critical analysis with practice, demonstrate that revealing and questioning the taken-for-granted boundaries through analytical frameworks, technical and design practice, and participatory approaches expands the space of imaginable possibilities and creates the conditions for ontological multiplicity in AI and computing development.


Nava Haghighi is a doctoral candidate in Computer Science at Stanford University with a focus on human-centered AI. Her research examines the ontological assumptions underlying the AI development pipeline to generatively expand possibilities for technical and design development by bridging critique with practice, building systems that make those assumptions visible, questionable, and thus, possible to design for. Nava's research has been published at top HCI venues, such as the ACM CHI, DIS, and CSCW. Her work has been supported by the Stanford Graduate Fellowship, Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, Center for Mind, Brain, Computation and Technology, and the EDGE Doctoral Fellowship. Prior to Stanford, Nava co-founded Atolla, an AI skincare company acquired by Function of Beauty in 2021. Nava holds a dual Master of Science in Computer Science and Integrated Design and Management from MIT, and a Bachelor of Architecture from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.