Upcoming Book on AI and Democracy
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Upcoming Book on AI and Democracy If you’ve been reading my blog, you’ve noticed that I have written a lot about AI and democracy, mostly with my co-author Nathan Sanders. I am pleased to announce that we’re writing a book on the topic.
This isn’t a book about deep fakes, or misinformation. This is a book about what happens when AI writes laws, adjudicates disputes, audits bureaucratic actions, assists in political strategy, and advises citizens on what candidates and issues to support. It’s a book that tries to look into what an AI-assisted democratic system might look like, and then at how to best ensure that we make use of the good parts while avoiding the bad parts.
This is what I talked about in my RSA Conference speech last month, which you can both watch and read. (You can also read earlier attempts at this idea.)
The book will be published by MIT Press sometime in fall 2025, with an open-access digital version available a year after that. (It really can’t be published earlier. Nothing published this year will rise above the noise of the US presidential election, and anything published next spring will have to go to press without knowing the results of that election.)
Right now, the organization of the book is in six parts:
AI-Assisted Politicians AI-Assisted Legislators The AI-Assisted Administration The AI-Assisted Legal System AI-Assisted Citizens Getting the Future We Want
It’s too early to share a more detailed table of contents, but I would like help thinking about titles. Below are my current list of brainstorming ideas: both titles and subtitles. Please mix and match, or suggest your own in the comments. No idea is too far afield, because anything can spark more ideas.
Titles:
AI and Democracy Democracy with AI Democracy after AI Democratia ex Machina Democracy ex Machina E Pluribus, Machina Democracy and the Machines Democracy with Machines Building Democracy with Machines Democracy in the Loop We the People + AI Artificial Democracy AI Enhanced Democracy The State of AI Citizen AI
Trusting the Bots Trusting the Computer Trusting the Machine
The End of the Beginning Sharing Power Better Run Speed, Scale, Scope, and Sophistication The New Model of Governance Model Citizen Artificial Individualism
Subtitles:
How AI Upsets the Power Balances of Democracy Twenty (or So) Ways AI will Change Democracy Reimagining Democracy for the Age of AI Who Wins and Loses How Democracy Thrives in an AI-Enhanced World Ensuring that AI Enhances Democracy and Doesn’t Destroy It How AI Will Change Politics, Legislating, Bureaucracy, Courtrooms, and Citizens AI’s Transformation of Government, Citizenship, and Everything In-Between Remaking Democracy, from Voting to Legislating to Waiting in Line How to Make Democracy Work for People in an AI Future How AI Will Totally Reshape Democracies and Democratic Institutions Who Wins and Loses when AI Governs How to Win and Not Lose With AI as a Partner AI’s Transformation of Democracy, for Better and for Worse How AI Can Improve Society and Not Destroy It How AI Can Improve Society and Not Subvert It Of the People, for the People, with a Whole lot of AI How AI Will Reshape Democracy How the AI Revolution Will Reshape Democracy
Combinations:
Imagining a Thriving Democracy in the Age of AI: How Technology Enhances Democratic Ideals and Nurtures a Society that Serves its People
Making Model Citizens: How to Put AI to Use to Help Democracy Modeling Citizenship: Who Wins and Who Loses when AI Transforms Democracy A Model for Government: Democracy with AI, and How to Make it Work for Us
AI of, By, and for the People: How Artificial Intelligence will reshape Democracy The (AI) Political Revolution: Speed, Scale, Scope, Sophistication, and our Democracy Speed, Scale, Scope, Sophistication: The AI Democratic Revolution The Artificial Political Revolution: X Ways AI will Change Democracy…Forever
> (It really can’t be published earlier. Nothing published this year will rise above the noise of the US presidential election, and anything published next spring will have to go to press without knowing the results of that election.)
I can understand the first point, but why would the results of the election matter in this context?
Probably this part:
> This is a book about what happens when AI writes laws, adjudicates disputes, audits bureaucratic actions, assists in political strategy, and advises citizens on what candidates and issues to support. [emphasis added]
This will be the first US presidential election with these tools widely available. If they want to write on the topic it'd be handy to see how the tools are used and how they may have influenced the election. Since it hasn't happened yet, they have to wait to fill in some sections with observations of what happens rather than just guesses of what might happen (though I'd be interested to see what they think could happen rather than just a retrospective).