AXM and Miles College have announced the establishment of a Cultural IP Research Hub, a collaborative initiative that brings together technology, legal scholarship, and cultural stewardship to advance research on intellectual property governance in the age of AI.
Miles College, a historically Black college and university (HBCU) in Fairfield, Alabama, has a long history of leadership in education, civil rights, and community empowerment. The Cultural IP Research Hub builds on this legacy by positioning the college at the intersection of technology, culture, and intellectual property governance — an area of growing importance as AI systems increasingly access and process creative and cultural works.
The Mission
The Cultural IP Research Hub is dedicated to researching and developing frameworks for the governance of cultural intellectual property in digital systems. The hub will focus on:
- Research: Producing scholarship on how cultural works are accessed, licensed, and valued in AI-driven economies
- Education: Training the next generation of leaders in cultural IP governance through coursework, mentorship, and hands-on research
- Community Engagement: Working with creators, cultural institutions, and communities to understand their needs and develop governance approaches that serve their interests
- Technology Development: Exploring how technical infrastructure can support equitable governance of cultural IP
Why HBCUs Matter in This Conversation
Historically Black colleges and universities have been centers of cultural production, preservation, and scholarship for over a century. As AI systems increasingly interact with cultural works, the perspectives and expertise of HBCU communities are essential to ensuring that governance frameworks are equitable, inclusive, and grounded in the lived experiences of diverse communities.
The Cultural IP Research Hub recognizes that questions about who benefits from AI's use of cultural works, how consent is expressed and enforced, and what infrastructure is needed to protect cultural sovereignty are not purely technical — they are deeply tied to history, identity, and justice.
Mentors and Advisors
The hub is supported by a distinguished group of mentors and advisors who bring expertise spanning intellectual property law, technology policy, cultural studies, and entrepreneurship:
- Hon. Judge Florence Johnson — Former Chief Justice, Alabama
- Dr. Bobbie Knight — President, Miles College
- Archie Davis — Co-founder, AXM
- Jameson Parker — Founder and CEO, AXM
- Gregory Knight — Advisor, Cultural IP
- C'Ardiss "Kitty" Gardner-Blessed — Cultural IP and Community Engagement
Looking Ahead
The Cultural IP Research Hub represents a commitment to ensuring that the governance of creative and cultural works in AI systems is informed by diverse perspectives, grounded in rigorous scholarship, and designed to serve the communities whose works are at stake.
We are honored to partner with Miles College on this initiative and look forward to the research, education, and community engagement that will emerge from this collaboration.