The political economy of AI: toward democratic control of the means of prediction

Book section

This chapter discusses the regulation of AI from the vantage point of political economy, based on the following premises. (1) AI systems maximize a single, measurable objective. (2) In society, different individuals have different objectives. AI systems generate winners and losers. (3) Society-level assessments of AI require trading off individual gains and losses. (4) AI requires democratic control of algorithms, data, and computational infrastructure to align algorithm objectives and social welfare. The chapter addresses several debates regarding the ethics and social impact of AI, including (1) fairness, discrimination, and inequality; (2) privacy, data property rights, and data governance; (3) value alignment and the impending robot apocalypse; (4) explainability and accountability for automated decision making; and (5) automation and the impact of AI on the labor market and on wage inequality.

Authors: Kasy, M

• Publication status: Published
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Host title: The Oxford Handbook of Algorithmic Governance and the Law
• Publication date: 2026-02-24
• DOI: 10.1093/9780191996030.003.0006
• EISBN: 9780191996030
• ISBN: 9780198890737
• Language: English
• Keywords: regulation; AI; fairness; automation; machine learning; value alignment; explainability; privacy