Sambusa Institute

The mission of the Sambusa Institute is to bring to the fore technologies influenced by the cultures that have coalesced around the fried distillation of all flavors, melded into different manifestations of a trigram. Samosas, wontons, momo, spring rolls, empanadas … all sambusa. Together, we represent the vast majority of this planet's population, yet we are so often collectively considered an afterthought in the scheme of the global technical underpinning.

All technical systems are designed for whiteness. I repeat, all technical systems are designed for whiteness.

These technologies were created to serve in-groups, inherently creating an other that serves the in-group in exchange for the smallest subset of value that placates the workers. The transformative power of technology explicitly envisioned to combat this design pattern in technology is the aim of this institute. We aim to align the design and implementation of technology around the needs of the sambusa-consuming populations of the world (that's most of us).

By pledging ourselves to the design of technology meant to serve actual people, we aim to realign the global technological mast towards greater good rather than accumulation of wealth. Especially in a time of significant re-entrenchment of ancient monies and severe war mongering (and, as of the time of this writing, literal world war), we must not only develop the means of protecting ourselves; we must develop the forces that counteract this dire situation. This effort is not for our lifetimes. It is for those of future generations we wish to free from the confines of the Empire.

We are as serfs in the Middle Ages. We sell our attention, are granted measly, overpriced “plots of land” (our 250 sq. ft. apartments) and endless entertainment in exchange for our eyeballs, our legs, our brains, our hearts. We don’t see, except for what they show us. We don’t move unless we’re told, “this is the move”. We don’t think until someone tells us what to think. We shed tears for imaginary struggle, untethered from reality, humanity.

This cannot be our future. This will not be our future.

The only way to mount an honest defense against these forces is to mount an offense. Truly, there is no time to waste. We have borne witness to the devastation generated images have collectively wrought on our WhatsApp groups, iMessages and TikTok feeds. Without immediate collective action, we leave ourselves exposed to a new kind of tyranny — a tyranny of overwhelming and inescapable falsehoods.

We must remake our communication, our security, our relationships fundamentally in our image.