Diego Mantilla

Colombian educator building AI-driven literacy programs for indigenous communities

Diego Mantilla is the creator of Lenguas Vivas, a Bogotá-based nonprofit that has developed AI-powered language learning tools for Colombia's 102 indigenous languages. Since 2022, his team has created over 3,000 hours of multilingual educational content tailored to rural communities, reaching 85,000+ students in 2023 alone. Diego's Codex Cultural initiative uses augmented reality to preserve endangered languages through interactive storytelling, recently recognized by UNESCO's Indigenous Languages Preservation Program. His 2024 partnership with MIT Media Lab expanded the platform to include sign language modules for deaf communities. A former teacher in Amazonas province, Diego's TED Talk When Technology Speaks Your Language (2023) highlighted how digital tools can reverse cultural erosion while improving educational outcomes. His work bridges cutting-edge tech with cultural preservation, creating scalable solutions for linguistic diversity in Latin America.