Re: Proposal for the New Top-Level Hierarchy ai.* - Artificial Intelligence

Thank you for your feedback on our proposal for the `ai.*` hierarchy.
Corrado Roberto and I would like to explain why we believe `ai.*` is not
only viable but also a valuable addition to Usenet-and why we hope to earn
your support.
You're absolutely right that there are over a dozen groups under
`comp.ai.*`, and many appear dormant. We've observed this too-groups like
`comp.ai.neural-nets` or `comp.ai.philosophy` have little to no activity.
But we see this as an opportunity, not a dead end. The inactivity doesn't
necessarily reflect a lack of interest in AI itself, but rather that these
groups, created decades ago, no longer align with today's AI landscape.
Modern AI-think ChatGPT, Grok, or image/video generators-has evolved far
beyond the scope of those older groups, which focus on niche or outdated
topics.

You suggest placing these groups under `it.*`, and it's a fair idea-after
all, `it.*` is thriving and Italian-focused. However, we see two key
reasons to opt for `ai.*` as a top-level hierarchy:
>
1. **Thematic Clarity**: `it.*` is a national hierarchy covering everything
from `it.comp` to `it.hobby`. Nesting AI groups there (e.g.,
`it.ai.chatgpt`) risks diluting their focus and visibility. AI is a global,
cutting-edge field deserving its own identity, not a subcategory of a
catch-all hierarchy. `ai.*` signals to users-Italian or not-that this is
*the* place for AI discussions, much like `comp.*` does for computing.
>
2. **Scalability**: Starting with `ai.ita.*` is just the beginning. A
top-level `ai.*` allows future growth-`ai.eng.*` for English speakers,
`ai.fr.*` for French, etc.-without being tied to a single language or
region. If we limit ourselves to `it.*`, we'd need separate proposals for
each language community, fragmenting the effort. `ai.*` offers a unified,
forward-thinking structure.