Gen4DS: Workshop on Data Storytelling in an Era of Generative AI

TL;DR

Gen4DS addresses data storytelling in the era of Generative AI by proposing a dedicated workshop that combines paper presentations, hands-on activities, pods, and debates to surface research agendas. It aims to balance scholarly exchange with experiential learning and to publish a white paper synthesizing workshop insights into a long-term research agenda. The initiative fosters an interdisciplinary community spanning visualization, HCI, journalism, and AI-assisted creativity, with practical guidance for ethical and effective AI-enabled storytelling. The workshop's anticipated impact is to accelerate responsible adoption of generative AI in data storytelling and to inform future VIS-related research and practice.

Abstract

Storytelling is an ancient and precious human ability that has been rejuvenated in the digital age. Over the last decade, there has been a notable surge in the recognition and application of data storytelling, both in academia and industry. Recently, the rapid development of generative AI has brought new opportunities and challenges to this field, sparking numerous new questions. These questions may not necessarily be quickly transformed into papers, but we believe it is necessary to promptly discuss them to help the community better clarify important issues and research agendas for the future. We thus invite you to join our workshop (Gen4DS) to discuss questions such as: How can generative AI facilitate the creation of data stories? How might generative AI alter the workflow of data storytellers? What are the pitfalls and risks of incorporating AI in storytelling? We have designed both paper presentations and interactive activities (including hands-on creation, group discussion pods, and debates on controversial issues) for the workshop. We hope that participants will learn about the latest advances and pioneering work in data storytelling, engage in critical conversations with each other, and have an enjoyable, unforgettable, and meaningful experience at the event.