The question of artificial intelligence is, at its core, a question for the humanities.

This is not because the humanities follow technological developments, but because they define the conditions under which such developments become meaningful. Artificial intelligence is often described in technical terms—as systems that generate language, organize information, and mediate communication. Yet these functions presuppose prior acts of interpretation. Decisions about what constitutes knowledge, what counts as relevant data, and which problems are worth solving are inherently interpretive. They are not merely technical choices. They are humanistic ones.

The current moment is frequently characterized by rapid advances in AI. However, what is distinctive is not only the increasing capability of these systems, but the domains in which they operate. AI systems now generate texts, simulate dialogue, and produce outputs that resemble meaningful discourse. These developments bring renewed attention to a fundamental distinction. Coherence is not equivalent to understanding.

AI-generated output may appear meaningful, yet they are produced without intentionality or interpretive grounding. This distinction raises a central question: what constitutes meaning in human communication? Addressing this question requires more than technical evaluation. It requires engagement with interpretation, context, and judgment—areas that have long been central to the humanities. In this sense, AI does not displace humanistic inquiry. It intensifies its relevance.

The Journal of Humanities and AI is grounded in a clear premise: the humanities are not peripheral to AI, but foundational to its understanding.

First, the journal places problem definition at the center of scholarly inquiry. Before any model is trained or any system is deployed, decisions are made about categories, data selection, and relevance. These decisions determine what becomes computable and what remains excluded. They shape the scope and limits of knowledge production.

Second, the journal promotes an approach in which computational methods and humanistic interpretation are mutually constitutive. Methods such as text analysis, semantic modeling, and data-driven approaches do not replace interpretation; they rely on it. The journal therefore welcomes research that integrates computational techniques with theoretically grounded analysis across disciplines including linguistics, literary studies, philosophy, history, and digital humanities.

Third, the journal situates AI within broader social, cultural, and ethical contexts. AI systems are embedded in structures of power, communication, and governance. They do not simply process information; they reorganize it. In doing so, they reshape how knowledge is produced, circulated, and evaluated.

To describe emerging forms of engagement at this intersection, this introduction proposes, as a heuristic figure, the humanities-informed AI civic architect—a perspective that emphasizes interpretation, design, and social responsibility. This figure is not prescriptive, but indicative of a broader shift in which humanistic inquiry participates in shaping, rather than merely interpreting, technological systems.

The inaugural issue, “The Role of Humanities in the Age of AI,” brings together contributions from scholars across North America, Europe, and Asia. The articles address a range of topics, including semantic representation, computational modeling, cultural and literary analysis, and the socio-political implications of algorithmic systems.

Taken together, these contributions demonstrate that the humanities are not peripheral to AI, but central to understanding its significance. They share a common concern with questions of meaning, interpretation, and value, which remain indispensable, particularly when mediated by computational systems.

The Journal of Humanities and AI aims to establish a sustained platform for rigorous, theoretically grounded, and internationally engaged scholarship. The journal operates under a double-blind peer review process and is supported by an international editorial board. Its goal is not only to publish research, but to consolidate a field that is currently distributed across multiple disciplines.

AI is often treated as an object of study. This journal adopts a different perspective. It approaches AI as a condition that reveals and reconfigures the role of humanistic inquiry. By doing so, it seeks to contribute not only to the analysis of AI, but also to the development of frameworks through which its significance can be understood. For this reason, the humanities are not optional. They are indispensable.

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