ARA SAT Lunchtime Webinar: Archivists in the Loop: Archival thinking across the AI development and evaluation lifecycle
Speaker: Wallace Batista dos Santos
Online - Friday 6th November - 1:00pm to 2:00pm
What role can archivists play in the development and evaluation of AI systems? This talk explores how archival and information-governance expertise can contribute beyond simply using AI or checking its outputs. Drawing on practical experience in AI evaluation, it looks at archival classification as annotation, multimodal output assessment, complex task and test design, evaluation rubrics, and specialised AI environments. It then considers how concepts such as context, provenance, accountability and lifecycle can help information professionals contribute to the wider information environments surrounding AI systems.
Speaker information:
Wallace Batista dos Santos is an archivist trained at the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), with a postgraduate specialisation in Brazil’s data protection law (LGPD) and a degree in Database Administration. For more than seven years, he has worked at the intersection of information governance, records management, data protection, and emerging technologies. He currently works as a Legislative Analyst – Archival Science at the Federal Senate of Brazil and is enrolled in the Specialising Master’s Programme in Artificial Intelligence, Innovation in Governance and Digital Transformation at Politecnico di Milano, Italy, beginning in November 2026. His professional trajectory combines archival practice with hands-on experience in AI evaluation, exploring how information professionals can contribute to the development, evaluation, and governance of artificial intelligence systems.
SAT information: The Section for Archives and Technology aims to provide a community of best practice and research around the intersection of archives, records and technology. Members are supported in keeping abreast of developments and working towards best practice in the curation of digitised and born digital materials, and their discovery and use. To find out more please contact sat@archives.org.uk. Follow us on Bluesky: @arasat.bsky.social
Booking costs: ARA members Free and non-members £10
Booking link: The closing date for Eventbrite bookings is Wednesday 4th November 2026.
Joining instructions will be sent 24 hours before the start date.