The Problem of Democracy with Henrik Skaug Sætra

Henrik Skaug Sætra considers the basis of democracy, the nature of politics, the tilt toward digital sovereignty and what role AI plays in our collective human society. 

Henrik and Kimberly discuss AI’s impact on human comprehension and communication; core democratic competencies at risk; politics as a joint human endeavor; conflating citizens with customers; productively messy processes; the problem of democracy; how AI could change what democracy means; whether democracy is computable; Google’s experiments in democratic AI; AI and digital sovereignty; and a multidisciplinary path forward.  

Henrik Skaug Sætra is an Associate Professor of Sustainable Digitalisation and Head of the Technology and Sustainable Futures research group at Oslo University. He is also the CEO of Pathwais.eu connecting strategy, uncertainty, and action through scenario-based risk management.

Related Resources

• Google Scholar Profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=pvgdIpUAAAAJ&hl=en
• How to Save Democracy from AI (Book – Norwegian): https://www.norli.no/9788202853686
• AI for the Sustainable Development Goals (Book): https://www.amazon.com/AI-Sustainable-Development-Goals-Everything/dp/1032044063
• Technology and Sustainable Development: The Promise and Pitfalls of Techno-Solutionism (Book): https://www.amazon.com/Technology-Sustainable-Development-Pitfalls-Techno-Solutionism-ebook/dp/B0C17RBTVL

A transcript of this episode is here.