Ole Miss Leads the Way in Narrative Intelligence

Kevin Bain

Narrative intelligence is a way for humans and computers to work together to analyze vast amounts of information, find patterns and help explain how stories spread, change and affect people. Narrative intelligence is an artificial intelligence – and human-driven process – that gathers that and analyzes large amounts of data from across the internet to detect trends. It is particularly useful in spotting misinformation and disinformation, making it an asset for national security. 

The University of Mississippi is home to the first-of-its-kind National Center for Narrative Intelligence (NCNI). This innovative center focuses on understanding and analyzing the power of narratives in our digital age. 

The goal is to study how narratives are created and responded to by various entities, including people, organizations, companies and governments. The study also seeks to understand the profound impact these narratives have, affecting everything from culture and politics to global economies and international relations.

“The center exists to facilitate collaboration among academic, industry and government leaders who are advancing the field of narrative intelligence,” says Wes Jennings, co-director of the NCNI. “It fosters foundational and applied research while enabling organizations to upskill their teams’ understanding of narratives and the tools and technologies that interface with them.”

A Spirit of Collaboration

The center is shaping the future workforce, increasing narrative intelligence research and innovation, developing partnerships, and promoting public awareness and engagement on narrative intelligence.

Jennings notes that NCNI’s role is significant as the government tracks and responds to threats, such as cognitive hacking, foreign malign influence and propaganda. Also, law enforcement must learn how to engage with the public in ways that aid crime prevention. Public health organizations need to learn why certain groups distrust science-backed guidance, and businesses that leverage AI to gather and report information needed to understand how different narratives can affect data. 

NCNI isn’t about telling people what’s true or false. Instead, it combines technology, especially artificial intelligence with human intelligence, to help people understand how narratives emerge, how they are manipulated, how they evolve and how they can affect people.

Literary Powerhouse

Joe Stradinger, CEO and founder of EdgeTheory, partnered with the university and says Oxford is the perfect place to explore and advance the use of narrative intelligence. The narrative intelligence firm has an office at Insight Park, a 19 acre research and business park adjacent to the University of Mississippi campus. The mission of Insight Park is to provide a dynamic research park where businesses can take full advantage of opportunities for collaborative research and academic resources.

“For years, our company has felt that the United States needs a national center for narrative intelligence and that Ole Miss was the natural place for it,” Stradinger says. “Mississippi has always been a narrative powerhouse, and Oxford has been home to a number of its most accomplished writers.”

The center uses AI models and large computing power to analyze tons of documents and social media posts, enabling analysts and researchers to see the big picture. The goal is to advance the areas that cover narrative generation, propagation, diffusion and consumption. The partnership between EdgeTheory and Ole Miss is a winning combination. Students gain practical experience, and the company gets access to a pipeline of skilled talent.

Instead of focusing on what people are searching for, EdgeTheory looks at who is creating the information, so their system studies how people and groups spread ideas.

By analyzing how different groups share information, EdgeTheory can spot new trends and patterns. Unlike search engines that can be influenced, this technology provides unbiased results. Essentially, EdgeTheory helps people understand how ideas spread by focusing on who shares them rather than what people search for.