Identifying A Global Demand: Inside the Applications to our Indigenous Languages Incubator

by Stefaan Verhulst, Sruthi Raghavan, and Andrew J. Zahuranec

When we opened applications for the inaugural New Commons Incubator for Indigenous Languages and Cultures on 19 June 2026, we hoped to reach Indigenous-led teams working to develop data commons for their languages and cultures in the age of AI. By the time the call closed on 14 August, the response had exceeded our expectations, both in volume and in geographic reach.

Here is what the applications told us.

The headline numbers

We received 180 form submissions in total. After removing duplicates and incomplete entries, that left approximately 155 unique, form-complete submissions—a strong signal of serious, considered interest from teams around the world.

A truly global call

Concept notes referenced 55 different countries, underscoring just how widely the challenge of Indigenous language stewardship is felt. India led the way with 15 mentions, followed closely by Nigeria with 13. Bangladesh, Canada, and Kenya rounded out the top five.

Who applied

The call drew a diverse mix of applicants, but it was clearly anchored by the communities at the heart of this work. Indigenous organisations were the single largest group with 42 applications, followed closely by NGOs and non-profits (39) and universities and research institutes (24). Private companies, start-ups, and independent applicants also featured strongly, alongside a smaller number of government bodies, media organisations, and intergovernmental entities.

The applicant pool included established Indigenous institutions as well as grassroots and diaspora-led initiatives. 

What they want to build

Across the concept notes, language revitalization and preservation was by far the most common theme, appearing in 86 mentions — nearly triple the next most frequent topic. Cultural practices (34), folklore (30), speech and voice recognition technology (29), and education (29) followed. The spread shows applicants think about language not in isolation, but woven together with culture, technology, and knowledge transmission.

Patterns of Demand 

A few patterns emerged in how different regions framed their work:

• Sub-Saharan Africa: Applications from across Sub-Saharan Africa often had a strong emphasis on ecological and environmental knowledge tied to language.

• Latin America: Many proposals emerging from Latin America focused almost exclusively on language itself—touching on topics such as translation or transcription.

• Diaspora-led groups: Several applications came from communities working outside their homelands. For example, we received applications from several groups who come from Russia but are now based in Georgia, the United States, and France.

The Takeaway: Overwhelming demand, and strong signals of genuine interest in this work. With a limited number of intensive cohort slots, we are actively exploring pathways to connect all applicants to some form of support — not only the teams we can host directly.

What happens next

Cohort selection is underway. We have let applicants know that final decisions will be communicated by mid-October at the latest, with the program kicking off shortly after. As we work through the next steps, we are also asking our steering committee and community how best to proceed given the scale of interest — so that the enthusiasm reflected in these numbers translates into lasting impact.

To everyone who applied: thank you. The breadth and depth of these applications is the clearest sign yet that a community-governed approach to Indigenous language data is not just needed, but wanted.

 

 

Figures reflect applications received during the open call (19 June – 14 August 2026). Country and topic counts are based on references within submitted concept notes; a single application may reference more than one country or theme. The regional-grouping and thematic-focus charts are illustrative summaries of concept-note content. Applicant-type and topic figures are drawn from the program's own application review. The New Commons Incubator is led by the Open Data Policy Lab at The GovLab.

Photo Credit:  Nick Kwan/Unsplash, licensed under CC0, photo of Bill Reid's "The Raven and the First Men"  (1980)