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Zoorna was founded in 2024 by Dr. Karine Megerdoomian—a computational linguist, AI strategist, and longtime advocate for inclusive tech—to bridge the gap between linguistic research and real-world AI applications.

Our Mission

Zoorna’s mission is to advance linguistically grounded, socially responsible AI through research, consulting, and education. We are committed to developing language technologies that work across diverse languages, domains, and communities, especially those historically underrepresented in AI. By combining deep linguistic insight, applied strategy, and accessible training, we support organizations and individuals in navigating the AI era with clarity, integrity, and purpose. From building tools to building confidence, we center inclusivity, equity, and critical thinking at every step.

Our Partners

Nonprofits & NGOs – AI strategy, NLP tools, ethical guidance
Academic & Research Partners – joint research, data development, multilingual modeling
Educators & Learners – AI4Her and Academy workshops for workforce development and empowerment

Our Values

Our philosophy is rooted in the idea that impactful AI begins with thoughtful inquiry: grounded in linguistics, open to interdisciplinary collaboration, and responsive to social and cultural realities. Whether we’re building systems, analyzing patterns, or training people, we treat language not just as numerical data—but as meaning, context, and connection.

What We Do

About Zoorna

Zoorna is an independent research and technology lab focused on advancing multilingual and linguistically grounded AI. We bring together computational linguistics, machine learning, generative AI, and critical inquiry to develop language technologies that work across languages, domains, and cultural contexts.

Our work spans AI research, consulting, and education. With a focus on low-resource languages, semantic complexity, and socially responsible deployment. We also help reskill individuals and teams for the AI era, with a commitment to inclusive learning and empowering women and girls to lead in the future of language technology.

The Team

At Zoorna, research, consulting, and education are deeply interconnected.

Zoorna Institute for Language, AI and Society

Research

The Zoorna Institute is our non-profit research center dedicated to advancing linguistic and NLP research in low-resource languages, with a focus on the languages of the Middle East and the Caucasus.

At the Zoorna Institute, we take a multidisciplinary approach that blends linguistics, social science, and cutting-edge AI to explore the deep connections between language and society. We partner with NGOs, nonprofits, academic institutions, and mission-driven organizations to develop innovative, AI-driven solutions with real-world social impact.

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Zoorna Technology Solutions

Solutions

Zoorna Technology Solutions is our consulting and strategy arm, helping organizations make sense of complex data and harness the power of AI. We provide consulting, AI strategy, and tailored NLP solutions for multilingual content, research and evaluation workflows, and global communication challenges.

Beyond automation, we partner with teams to design and implement AI technologies—from multilingual NLP and GenAI integration to linguistically informed system design. Our work also includes research-for-hire projects and product development.

Lets Work Together

Zoorna AI Academy

Education

Zoorna AI Academy, home to AI4Her, our initiative to empower women and girls to understand, create, and lead in the age of artificial intelligence. We offer accessible, hands-on courses that help individuals and organizations develop the knowledge and skills to engage with AI critically and confidently.

We focus on upskilling and reskilling through tailored programs for diverse learners. Our programs blend practical knowledge with critical insight, offering a deeper understanding of how AI works, when to use it, and what questions to ask before integration.

Explore Courses

What We Do

Why Zoorna?

The "zoorna" (or "zurna") is a double-reed wind musical instrument used in folk music in the Middle East, the Caucasus and Central Asia. It is very commonly played in Armenian music. Unlike the mystical and soft sounding Duduk, the Zoorna has a loud and piercing tone (but great for celebrations). It was also a nickname Karine’s mother gave her as a child—for being too loud, too persistent, or both. We like that energy!