Author: Daniel Erlacher
This article has been published by Trax
Brave new world? We experience data-hungry smartphones, self-driving cars, drones and robots, fitness apps and smart TVs - permanently connected to the Internet. Social media applications create filter bubbles fostering further social polarization and thus undermine the fundamentals of democracy. The digital world we all inhabit is dominated by powerful corporations and their algorithms, but how often are we aware of it? To what degree are we already being remote controlled?
When insurances calculate their fees according to the vital data of their customers, this impacts their lifestyle. Governments and intelligence agencies use similar methods, claiming to increase our security. Stock market prices change by the minute and its not humans calculating them anymore. It's algorithms who decide where to invest - with unforeseeable consequences. In medicine humans are reduced to the data of their vital signs.
The question about total surveillance and control slowly arrived in the mainstream discourse (thanks, Edward Snowden!) and has sparkled debates about power relations, decentralization and self empowerment. But beyon...
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