Why AI Undermines Democracy and What To Do About It

Across the world, AI is used as a tool for political manipulation and totalitarian repression. Stories about AI are often stories of polarization, discrimination, surveillance, and oppression. Is democracy in danger? And can we do anything about it? In this compelling and balanced book, Mark Coeckelbergh reveals the key risks posed by AI for democracy. He argues that AI, as currently used and developed, undermines fundamental principles on which liberal democracies are founded, such as freedom and equality. How can we make democracy more resilient in the face of AI? And, more positively, what can AI do for democracy? Coeckelbergh advocates not only for more democratic technologies, but also for new political institutions and a renewal of education to ensure that AI promotes, rather than hinders, the common good for the twenty-first century. Why AI Undermines Democracy and What to Do About It is illuminating reading for anyone who is concerned about the fate of democracy. Now available as an audiobook

Mark Coeckelbergh is Professor of Philosophy of Media and Technology at the University of Vienna.

Acknowledgments Preface 1 Introduction 2 A not so democratic history 3 What AI, what democracy? 4 How AI undermines the basic principles of democracy 5 How AI erodes knowledge and trust 6 Strengthening democracy and democratising AI 7 AI for democracy and a new Renaissance 8 The common good and communication Notes References Index