Ciao,
sul tema del colonialismo digitale c'è questo interessante
paper (scovato via The Syllabus):
"Algorithmic colonization of Africa":
L'ho letto, e molte delle considerazioni che fa sono applicabili non solo all'Africa, ma al contesto generale
(i.e. visione degli essere umani solo come merce da cui estrarre dati, utilitarismo digitale, assenza totale di consultazione
dei
"soggetti" a cui vengono applicati gli algoritmi, ecc.); ci sono però
alcune osservazioni interessanti sul contesto africano,
ad esempio su come il celebrato microcredito tramite M-Pesa possa in realtà portare a situazioni di perenne debito,
oppure sulla sorveglianza della popolazione in Sudafrica.
Abstract
We live in a world where technological corporations hold unprecedented
power and influence. Technological solutions to social, political, and
economic challenges are rampant. In the Global South, technology that is
developed with Western perspectives, values, and interests is imported
with little regulation or critical scrutiny. This work examines how
Western tech monopolies, with their desire to dominate, control and
influence social, political, and cultural discourse, share common
characteristics with traditional colonialism. However, while traditional
colonialism is driven by political and government forces, algorithmic
colonialism is driven by corporate agendas. While the former used brute
force domination, colonialism in the age of AI takes the form of
‘state-of-the-art algorithms’ and ‘AI driven solutions’ to social
problems. Not only is Western-developed AI unfit for African problems,
the West’s algorithmic invasion simultaneously impoverishes development
of local products while also leaving the continent dependent on Western
software and infrastructure. By drawing examples from various parts of
the continent, this paper illustrates how the AI invasion of Africa
echoes colonial era exploitation. This paper then concludes by outlining
a vision of AI rooted in local community needs and interests.
Ciao,
Federico