In late February the European Commission published its much-anticipated white book on artificial intelligence (AI). The paper is considered to be the first transnational attempt to regulate AI and is part of the EU’s overall plan to shape the trajectory of digital technologies over the following decade. This attempt by Europe to regulate technology can be assessed as a combination of business-friendly surveillance capitalism and authoritarian state control.

The use of big data und machine learning harbours the promise of more accurate, unbiased future predictions than human beings on their own can ever be capable of. Yet because existing data sets are always utilised, these calculations are in reality extrapolations of the past and serve to reproduce prejudices embedded in the data. This, in turn, raises ethical and moral dilemmas. As mirrors of our society, algorithms show the status quo, reinforce errors and are subject to targeted influences – for the good and for the bad. Besides the limitations, injustices and oracle-like nature of these technologies, there are also questions about the nature of the opportunities and possibilities they offer. As a result, they challenge us to imagine what a world made of data might look like and to formulate a vision of the world we want to live in.

This session brings together Julia Kloiber – co-founder of Superrr Lab, a visionary feminist organisation and network for the research of the potential of new technologies for a pluralistic society – and Frederike Kaltheuner – tech policy analyst, researcher and advocate for justice in a world made of data – to talk about all these issues.