Get in touch:mrinalinixsingha@gmail.com
     
Hi, I’m Mrinalini—a creative technologist, researcher, designer, and artist from India.

My work intersects critical media studies, human-computer interaction, AI ethics, and climate justice, with a focus on examining socio-technical systems in relation to societies and ecologies, especially in the Global South. I recently graduated with an MS in Art, Culture, and Technology from MIT. My thesis, Disrupting Monocultural Tendencies through Multi-modal Montage, examines how multimodal approaches to narrative and media construction can challenge dominant socio-political perspectives.

Drawing from diverse research and industry experiences—such as being a SERC Scholar at the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing, a Research Assistant at the MIT Documentary Lab, a Design Researcher at Alt News, and a Creative Technologist at Deeplocal—my approach emphasizes responsible, ethical, and inclusive media technologies. Additionally, my practice has been shaped by my engagements as an NID Ford Foundation Fellow, an MIT Design X Fellow, and an Ars Electronica Founding Lab member. These have reinforced my commitment to experimental, socially-conscious design.

I work across immersive media, film, tangible interfaces, and game engines, with over five years of experience in interactive design, research, and media production. My projects navigate ambiguities in AI, address misinformation, and create immersive public exhibitions. My work has been presented at ACM CHI, ISEA, NeurIPS (forthcoming), the MIT Museum and the Mumbai International Film Festival. Recent projects include A Mystery for You, a fact-checking game using Large Language Objects (LLO) to enhance media literacy, and AI installations for Google Cloud Next 2023. I’m skilled in Unity 3D, TouchDesigner, JavaScript, and physical computing, often using AI APIs to craft thoughtful, interactive experiences.

I have worked across diverse contexts—from cultural projects in the Western Himalayas and media politics in India to microplastics in the Netherlands and rural innovation in China—and am currently based in the United States.






Recent Updates

UPCOMING: Our game “A Mystery for You” has been selected for NeurIPS 2024 Creative AI Track!

UPCOMING: Our work part of the Worlding initiative -- a collaboration between MIT Open Documentary Lab and Unity Technologies -- is soon to be published by Leonardo!

OCT 2024: My Master’s Thesis Disrupting Monocultural Tendencies through Multimodal Montage” is finally available to read on MIT DSpace!

OCT 2024: I presented a poster on “Approaches to Thoughtful Tangible Interfacing with LLMs for Educational Game Play” at UChicago’s Symposium on Communication & Intelligence.

SEPT 2024: Our research was published as a SERC Case-Study - “Mining to E-waste: The Environmental and Climate Justice Implications of the Electronics Hardware Life Cycle.”

JUNE 2024: My paperRe-Worldings at MIT of Beaver Terrapolis Terristories” based on Stata Island was presented at ISEA.

MAY 2024: I defended my thesis and graduated from MIT with a Master of Science in Art, Culture and Technology!

MAY 2024: Our game “A Mystery for you: A fact-checking game enhanced by large language models (LLMs) and a tangible interface” won the Best Student Game Design Award at ACM CHI! The paper can be found here.

AUG 2023: I presented at Ars Electronica as part of the Founding Lab!

MAY 2023: My solo exhibition “Forensic Artifacts of a Democracy in Crisis” opened for public viewing at the ACT Student Gallery!





Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
M.S. Art, Culture, and Technology
2022-24

National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad
Bachelors of Design, Film & Video Communication 
2016-21

Royal Academy of Art, The Hague
Interactive Media Design, Exchange
2019

United World College Mahindra, India
International Baccalaureate
2014-16
Recognition & Awards

ACM CHI
Student Game Competition Winner

2024

Ars Electronica
IDSA Founding Lab Student
2023
MIT Design X
Venture Design Fellow
2023

MIT Architecture
Scholarship
2022-24

KC Mahindra
Scholarship
2022

Ford Foundation
Fellowship
2020-21


Research & Industry Experience

MIT Schwarzman College of Computing Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Computing (SERC) ScholarOct 2023 - Aug 2024

Deeplocal, Pittsburgh
Creative Technologist Intern
June - Aug 2023

MIT Open Documentary Lab
Research Assistant
Sept 2022- Sept 2023

Alt News, India
Design Researcher
Aug 2021 - Aug 2022


Academic Experience

MIT Graduate Teaching Assistant Sept 2022 - May 2024

MIT Kaufman Teaching Certification
2023

Select Publications

Disrupting Monocultural Tendencies through Multimodal Montage. Master’s Thesis’24.
A Mystery For You: An LLM Powered Fact Checking Game with a Tangible Interface. ACM CHI’24 with collaborator Haoheng Tang.
Re-Worldings at MIT of Beaver Terrapolis Terristories. ISEA’24.



Select Exhibitions & Screenings

Forensic Artifacts of a Democracy in Crisis. Solo Show.
MIT ACT Gallery
2023

Rivers in the Sky, Clouds Down Below.
MIT Media Lab
2023

Counteractions. Group Show.
Distillery Gallery, Boston
2023

Mumbai International Film Festival
2022