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About the sphere
we keep small.

MonkeySphere AI Inc. is an Indigenous-led technology studio operating from Snuneymuxw territory in Nanaimo, BC. We work in service of communities and the long arc of their data — keeping our partner list short on purpose, and our standards intentionally non-negotiable.

001 — Our story

Why we
are here.

MonkeySphere began with a simple, stubborn idea: that the people building AI should be the same people who care about who it serves — and that those things are, more often than not, the same conversation.

We are an Indigenous-led team rooted in Snuneymuxw territory. Our work is grounded in OCAP® and OCAS principles and the lived responsibilities that come with Indigenous data stewardship. We design AI, build the web around it, and tell the story of what we did.

We keep the portfolio small because relationships are the only part of this work that genuinely scale. Three years from now, we want to be still talking with every team on this page — and that means we have to say no more often than we say yes.

002The people03 humans · senior-only

Three people,
each indispensable.

No junior pods, no off-shored handoffs. The people you meet on day one are the ones doing the work on day ninety.

/ 001 MW

Michael West

Data Maestro

Mike has 25 years of experience across database management, satellite networking, software programming, and GIS. He has worked on both small and large technology projects, primarily in the education and government sectors.

Most recently, he has turned his attention to Artificial Intelligence in service of the revitalization of Indigenous languages — applying his depth in data systems to a problem that very few teams are equipped to take on responsibly.

DisciplineData infrastructure
Experience25 years
SectorsEducation, Government
FocusAI for language revitalization
/ 002 DF

Darrell Fraser

Chief Visionary Officer

A seasoned web developer with over 15 years of experience in web content and data, Darrell has expanded his expertise into cutting-edge AI solutions with a focused lens on data sovereignty and OCAP® and OCAS principles.

Guided by his Indigenous Métis heritage, he works at the intersection of culture, language, and technology — driving a vision where AI and Indigenous identity not only coexist, but strengthen one another.

DisciplineAI · web · strategy
Experience15+ years
HeritageMétis
FocusOCAP® · OCAS · Data sovereignty
/ 003 JD

James Delorme

Indigenous Innovation Architect

As a former Chief of Klahoose First Nation and former board member of the BC Assembly of First Nations (BCAFN), James' political leadership and deep community roots inform everything he does.

Combined with his work in technology innovation, James offers a dynamic skill set that is rare and greatly needed in these times of change and progress. His years working closely with communities on economic development and social projects make him an invaluable voice at the intersection of Indigenous leadership and digital innovation.

DisciplineGovernance · innovation
RolesFormer Chief, Klahoose
Board serviceBC AFN (former)
FocusIndigenous innovation
003What we hold04 values

Values, plainly stated.

/ 01

Sovereignty over speed.

We will not ship faster by cutting corners on data governance. OCAP® and OCAS principles set the floor, never the ceiling, for how we handle community information.

/ 02

Relationships over throughput.

A short partner list is a feature. We turn down good work regularly so the work we accept can get our full attention.

/ 03

Plain language always.

No buzzwords, no jargon walls, no slide decks that obscure what we're actually proposing. Communities deserve clarity, and clarity is contagious upstream.

/ 04

Stewardship, not delivery.

The end of an engagement isn't a handoff — it's a hand-off plus a season of staying close, training, and answering questions long after the invoice clears.

004 — Land

We work on Snuneymuxw territory.

MonkeySphere AI Inc. operates from Nanaimo, BC — the traditional and unceded territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation. We acknowledge that this land was, and continues to be, cared for by Coast Salish peoples since time immemorial.

Acknowledgement without action is decoration. We try to make our practice — who we hire, who we serve, how we govern data — a small ongoing answer to that responsibility.

Read our full data acknowledgement

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