About
Pasifika AI is an independent, open-to-all, account-free and ad-free project, built by Kanaky Tech from Auckland, Aotearoa.
Why
Ask a general-purpose assistant what a Māori welcome protocol involves, how to say a simple word in Samoan, what a Kanak customary gesture entails. You may get a fluent and confident but inaccurate answer: a Māori practice attributed to Kanak people, a Tongan usage lent to Samoans, a word invented outright. This is not malice, it is scarcity. What documents these cultures is thinly digitised, often closed, sometimes paywalled. The model fills the gap.
The Pacific is home to distinct peoples, languages and traditions. Conflating them is not a technical imprecision; it erases what makes one people distinct from another. This tool is built to keep them distinct, at our scale.
How it is built
Two regimes, chosen automatically from the question.
The Pacific. A search restricted to 66 institutional domains, each one verified: language academies, universities, national museums, archives, regional organisations. Never the open web. Links in the source panel are filtered against that list. This does not guarantee that every claim in an answer is correct or supported: open the source to check the relevant passage.
Kanak languages. One of those sources is read without searching: the Kanak language dictionary we publish is embedded as an index of 19,655 entries across nine languages. This index supports lookup of documented forms and flags words that are not found. It does not certify sentences, translations or every use of a word.
The safety net
After every answer, a mechanical check compares Kanak-language words against the index and shows the reader any that do not appear. This check is separate from text generation. It reduces some risks without eliminating errors: a dictionary form can still be used in an inappropriate context.
What it costs
Access is free, with shared, capped daily capacity. Voluntary donations help cover operation and maintenance. When the cap is reached, it resumes the next day. That is the trade-off of being open to all, and it is a choice — an account to create or an advert to watch would have shut out exactly the people this is built for.
What this site is not
It does not speak for any people. It reports what institutions have published, and names them. Some knowledge in the Pacific belongs to a clan, a lineage or an initiated group, and is not ours to publish: on those questions the only honest answer is to point to its custodians. It is also not legal, medical or administrative advice.
Get in touch
kanaky.xyz · Kanaky Tech on LinkedIn · The Kanak language dictionary
Using Pasifika AI: direct answers
Is there an AI assistant for exploring Pacific cultures?
Pasifika AI is a free web assistant developed by Kanaky Tech for exploring Pacific cultures and languages. Ask a question in English or French, follow the source links, and use the regional guides to continue reading. It is an introduction to documented knowledge, not a substitute for speakers, educators or customary authorities.
Who develops Pasifika AI?
Kanaky Tech develops and publishes Pasifika AI from Auckland, Aotearoa. Pasifika AI is an independent project. Institutions listed as sources are not presented as partners or as endorsing the service.
Can Pasifika AI help me explore Pacific languages?
Yes. Pasifika AI helps you explore Pacific languages through questions, documented vocabulary and named sources. Coverage varies by language. Its Kanak dictionary supports lexical checks across nine languages; translations and culturally sensitive expressions should be confirmed with a competent speaker.
How can I verify or correct an answer?
Open the linked source and check whether it supports the specific claim, including the people, place and period concerned. To report an error, send the page URL, question, disputed passage and a supporting reference to kevyn@kanaky.xyz. Do not include private or restricted cultural knowledge.