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An Artificial Revolution
An Artificial Revolution

An Artificial Revolution

On Power, Politics and AI

Mood Indigo

POLITICAL SCIENCE

156 Pages, 4.75 x 7

Formats: Trade Paper

Trade Paper, $12.95 (US $12.95) (CA $16.95)

Publication Date: October 2020

ISBN 9781911648116

Rights: US & CA

The Indigo Press (Oct 2020)

Price: $12.95
 
 

Overview

An essential primer to understand the intersection of technology and geopolitical forces

Privacy consultant and AI expert Ivana Bartoletti explores the urgent existential threat that artificial intelligence poses to international social justice When most people think about AI, they think about the future—from driverless cars and smart cities to HAL 9000 and the Terminator—and are unaware that AI is already creating a dystopian present. The third book in the Mood Indigo series argues that the rapid growth of the AI industry is threatening to undo decades of progress in human rights and global equality. AI has unparalleled transformative potential to reshape society, our economies and our working lives, but without legal scrutiny, international oversight and public debate, we are sleepwalking into a future written by algorithms which encode racist, sexist and classist biases into our daily lives. This book exposes the reality of the AI revolution, from the low-paid workers who toil to train algorithms to recognize cancerous polyps, to the rise of techno-racism and techno-chauvinism and the symbiotic relationship between AI and right wing populism.

Reviews

"Bartoletti exhorts us at all times to bring our human intelligence to bear on the potentially dystopian power structures behind AI, writing with clarity, expertise and passion." —Paul Mason, author, PostCapitalism: A Guide to Our Future

'Ivana powerfully exposes the reality of data discrimination and online targeting in society and the danger of AI, as a result, becoming our master not our servant. She also clearly outlines the radical changes to power structures and culture and the embedding of ethics which are necessary in finding the solution.' —Tim Clement-Jones. Lib Dem spokesperson for the digital economy in the House of Lords
 
'An essential read. At a time when we are fighting to put our environment at the top of the political agenda, Ivana Bartoletti lucidly demonstrates how another future for our digital environment is possible.' —Mete Coban, councillor for Stoke Newington
 
'A powerful wake up call. The link between AI, data and power can no longer be ignored, and, unless we take action, society's injustices will be written into all of our futures. Tech should benefit everyone and Bartoletti's book argues passionately for how it could and should improve our burning planet.' —Ayesha Hazarika, broadcaster, journalist and political commentator
 
‘Bartoletti demonstrates the potential for artificial intelligence to encode discrimination of all kinds into algorithmic patterns. Technology can improve our lives, but to harness all its positive potential, she rightly and powerfully insists on public accountability and scrutiny.’ —David Lammy MP
 
‘‘An absorbing and thought-provoking analysis of how technology is transforming our life, and a simple message: workers are far more than something for algorithms to hire or fire. AI holds promises and can make our life better but only if we, citizens, workers and trade unions are involved in the conversation.’ —Frances O’Grady, General Secretary of the TUC
 
‘You can’t enter the 20s without reading this book. It hurls a log into the path of the thunderous express train of technology. Bartoletti cuts through the hype of AI and gets to the nub of the problem: data violence. It’s an angry book about the power politics of tech advancement where human rights and personal freedoms are mere collateral damage. Her feminist gaze is sharp on male technocrats using tech tools to manipulate and persuade politically. It is a tale of algorithmic injustice against women, ethnic minorities and people of colour. To say that it is thought provoking would be an underestimate. I am still reeling from its power.’ —Noel Sharkey, emeritus professor of artificial intelligence and robotics at the University of Sheffield
 

Author Biography

Ivana Bartoletti is Head of Privacy and Data Ethics at London-based consultancy Gemserv, and supports businesses in their privacy by designing programs, especially in relation to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and blockchain technology. Ivana was awarded Woman of the Year (2019) in the Cyber Security Awards in recognition of her growing reputation as an advocate of equality, privacy and ethics at the heart of tech and AI. She is a sought after commentator for the BBC, Sky and other major broadcasters and news outlets.

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