Alignment Problem as Cultural and Legal Challenge: Artificial Intelligence, Interpretability, and Searching for Sense

The article examines the AI alignment problem as a fundamental challenge of cross-cultural communication between human interpretive frameworks and algorithmic optimization. The author argues that effective AI alignment requires integrating cultural sense-making practices and legal frameworks that vary across societies. The analysis reveals how current regulatory attempts, including the EU AI Act and national AI strategies, struggle with three interconnected challenges: ensuring the interpretability of algorithmic decisions, managing the indeterminism inherent in AI systems, and addressing knowledge extraction controversies. Through examination of emerging AI agents, Big Tech’s regulatory capture, and the rise of AI nationalism, the study demonstrates that alignment failures stem not from technical limitations alone, but from inadequate engagement with diverse cultural logics of interpretation. The author proposes frameworks that adapt AI systems to varied contexts while maintaining core functionality and concludes that solving alignment requires computational cultural modelling capable of navigating value pluralism. The analysis warns that without integrating technical safety mechanisms with cultural frameworks of societies, AI systems risk becoming tools of extraction and control rather than beneficial partners for societies.