AI – from undermining democracy to strengthening it

Photo: Andrey Popov/Mostphotos

“In many contexts AI and algorithms have been shown to contribute to mistrust, conflicts and authoritarian tendencies. Audrey Tang, on the other hand, highlights how technology can be used to strengthen openness, participation and democratic accountability,” says Eva Hansson, vice director of the Stockholm Center for Global Asia, Department of Political Science, who has invited Audrey Tang to Stockholm University.

Audrey Tang is a pioneer of participatory digital governance and former Digital Minister of Taiwan. This visit is a possibility for Stockholm University to create an open dialogue about the way technology affects democracy and governance and to show that what is happening in Asia is also closely linked to social developments here, says Eva Hansson.

AI reinforces conflicts

“Today, we see a clear trend towards autocratisation in many parts of the world, while polarisation increases in almost every country and on every continent. AI is an important component in these processes, not least through how algorithms control information flows, reinforce conflicts and shape which voices have an impact,” Eva Hansson says.

She explains that AI is a fundamental democratic issue, not just a technical one. It is about how we can avoid technology contributing to the erosion of democracy and instead create systems that contribute to transparency, pluralism and accountability.

Citizen participation

Audrey Tang. Photo: Right Livelihood

During the lecture, Eva Hansson hopes to hear more about Audrey Tang’s concrete experiences of working with citizen participation in digital governance processes and how such models can work beyond the Taiwanese context, as well as about the tensions that arise when ideals of openness and transparency meet political realities and technical limitations.

Audrey Tang herself says that AI is a force for good that can help revive global democracy:
“When we design systems that optimize consensus rather than engagement-based outrage, we unlock the true civic potential of our digital infrastructure.”

Practical perspective and academic analyses

Eva Hansson sees the following panel discussion as an opportunity to bring Audrey Tang’s practical perspective into contact with academic analyses of democracy, constitutional law and power in an era of technological transformation.

Audrey Tang intends to use the opportunity to engage with students and researchers on how people can move from what she calls “the human in the loop of AI” to “the AI in the loop of humanity model.”

“It is vital that the people are given the opportunity to get off the AI hamster wheel and take control of the AI steering wheel. In this way, AI can strengthen rather than undermine democratic institutions, transforming the magma-like power of social conflict into geothermal energy for co-creation,” she says.

Follow the lecture in Aula Magna or online. Registration and more information