Greed in Green: The New Garb of Climate Solutionism
Dear Reader,
The past month has brought many of the internet’s structural problems into glaring view. Indeed, there was the rampant disinformation on social media that only supercharged the volatile political climate after the assassination attempt on former US president, Donald Trump. Not long after, we witnessed a faulty software update cause global pandemonium, affecting more than 8 million Microsoft devices, disrupting key services such as banking and healthcare, and leading to tens of thousands of flights being canceled or delayed. Taken together, these events highlight the extent of capture by private corporations of the vital and interconnected infrastructures of today’s digital world and the enormous systemic risks that this brings with it.
In other news, the UN General Assembly recently adopted a China-sponsored (non-binding) resolution towards AI capacity building, particularly aimed at addressing infrastructural deficits in developing countries, and calling on support from international organizations and financial bodies to contribute to overcoming these problems. Relatedly, ministers from across the African continent unanimously adopted the ‘Continental Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy and African Digital Compact’, a set of commitments and road maps for regional cooperation in mobilizing AI for strategic and development goals. Both of these capture the growing momentum of Global South advocacy around the tech space, and incipient signs that Southern governments are keen to shape the discourse at regional and multilateral fora.
In the AI track, July saw the release of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)’s Patent Landscape Report on Generative AI, which provides an insightful overview of the distribution of lesser-known intangible assets in the field. Most striking in the report is the overwhelming dominance of China. In fact, the report tracks 54,000 GenAI inventions that have arisen in the decade through 2023, and it documents how nearly 38,000 of these have come from China. This is six times more than the US, which is in second place. South Korea, Japan, and India are next in line, albeit with significantly fewer patents. Still, these numbers provide some perspective in the context of today’s growing geo-politicization of the AI space, with intellectual property likely to persist as a key frontier in this battle.
On the financial side of AI, it has been a nervous few weeks, with renewed alarms being sounded about the ‘AI bubble’ by a new Goldman Sachs report, as well as a number of VCs. Given the general lack of clear monetization pathways and business models around the technology, and the rising cost of its deployment, the vast pools of money that have been invested now seem precariously placed, and susceptible to a plummet in stock prices. It remains to be seen what kind of systemic effects this would generate if it does indeed come to pass.
Finally, antitrust investigations and sanctions continue to pursue Big Tech activity across the board. France initiated an investigation into Nvidia for anti-competitive behavior, Italy’s antitrust authority is looking into alleged unfair uses of data by Google, and the EU is scrutinizing Google and Samsung’s AI partnership. Additionally, Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) imposed a $220 million fine on Meta for repeated breaches of local data protection laws.
Moving to our current issue of DataSyn, we bring you two thoughtful reflections on the ominous consequences for human autonomy that our current technological trajectories portend. For our first piece of the month, we interview one of FIAN International’s lead investigators regarding their recent report on the dark side of ‘datafied’ green initiatives. For our second piece, we bring you a critical engagement with AI’s co-option of worker knowledge, and the political questions that this dynamic brings to the fore about digital capitalism.
The DataSyn Team
PROLETARIAT MATTERS
‘Green’ Capitalism and Datafication in Colombia
An interview with FIAN International’s Philip Seufert
The intersections between climate politics and digital technology have increasingly come to the fore in public discussion of late. Yet, a dimension that often does not get covered is how data processes are implicated in green initiatives, particularly in the case of controversial mechanisms such as carbon markets. FIAN International recently released an incisive report, taking a deep dive into the data politics of carbon markets in Colombia, and its erosive effects on the autonomy of local farmers and food systems. We sat down with Philip Seufert to learn more.
Read on.
THE NEW DIVERGENCE
Man vs Machine - But Whose Machine Are We Talking About?
Sandeep Radhakrishnan
As some have noted, the effect of the bluster and noise of AI’s doomsday scenarios has often been an occlusion of sustained and meaningful discussion on much more tractable and specific problems that have arisen in its wake: not least, the problem of worker autonomy. Sandeep Radhakrishnan examines recent controversies, and draws on his fieldwork in the public services industry, to critically reflect on the political trappings in today’s AI industry that perpetuate its disruptive relationship to labor.
Read on.
The Sins & Synergies Lounge
As the climate clock ticks below five years, the window of time within which we can prevent 1.5°C of global warming is rapidly dwindling. Today, taking stock of the planetary costs of digitalization is more important than ever. Not to miss in this regard is the ETC Group’s new report, which highlights digitalization’s exacerbation of existing inequalities and extraction of resources from land, ocean, and even space. Also, check out this discussion organized by MozFest House Amsterdam that provides a comprehensive overview of the issues surrounding the internet’s carbon footprint.
With Europe standing at a crucial juncture in the 'AI arms race,' Frederike Kaltheuner and Leevi Saari, in this timely intervention, interrogate the bloc’s nascent industrial policy on AI.
As Google begins to roll out AI in its search functions, check out Lois Parshley’s assessment of AI data centers’ drain on energy and water resources. Also worthy of note is Scott Shuey’s investigation into the politics of this use of AI overviews, where publishers see fewer users visit their sites, even as their content powers the AI-generated responses.
In the world of work, we turn your attention to this illuminating inquiry anchored by the DAIR Institute into the conditions of data work through compelling first-person accounts, such as this one on the experiences of migrant content moderators in Germany.
On a lighter note, stop by Ingrid Fetell Lee’s argument and strategy for taking control of discovery on the internet and this discussion on Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Music hosted by UConn’s Centre for the Study of Popular Music. We also recommend this very long but accessible video essay by the Then & Now channel for a critical history of AI development.
Post-script
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