This book critically examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping global power dynamics. Through “algorithmic colonialism”— the extraction of data, labor, and natural resources from the Global South to fuel Western technological dominance, it reveals how AI systems exacerbate the inequalities between wealthy nations and the developing world. Drawing on case studies from Kenya and the BRICS nations, the author investigates the hidden socio-environmental costs of AI, ranging from the exploitation of content moderators in African digital sweatshops to the construction of water-hungry data centers in drought-stricken regions. Additionally, the book traces how a select group of technology corporations have become “new Leviathans”, exercising sovereign power without democratic accountability. However, this is not solely a narrative of domination. The author also highlights innovative forms of resistance, such as India’s public digital infrastructure and Africa’s linguistic AI initiatives, and advocates “planetary solidarity” as an alternative framework. Combining political economy, ecology, and decolonial theory, this book is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the role of AI in 21st-century global inequality and the struggle for technological sovereignty.
This book examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping global power dynamics. Through 'algorithmic colonialism'—the extraction of data, labour, and natural resources from the Global South to fuel Western technological dominance, it reveals how AI systems exacerbate the inequalities between wealthy nations and the developing world.
