In AI We Trust

Helga Nowotny is former President of the European Research Council. She is Professor Emerita of Social Studies of Science at ETH Zurich.

‘In this ambitious and visionary book, the brilliant Helga Nowotny offers an original analysis of the current moment, at a time when the combined challenges of the pandemic, AI and climate change may alter our future in unimaginable ways. The author’s remarkable intellectual range is brought to bear on this complex constellation of social developments as she provides readers with much-needed tools for making sense of the situation. In AI We Trust should certainly be the “go-to” book for navigating the decades ahead.’Michèle Lamont, Harvard University‘In this thoughtful and urgent book Helga Nowotny describes how the excitement of riding in digital time machines can blind us to the precariousness of our present circumstances, how imperfect predictions too readily mutate into policies, and how efficiency is more often than not a euphemism for moral indecision. This book is an important guide to the open-ended co-evolutionary future that is equal parts human spirit and mechanical appliance.’David Krakauer, Santa Fe Institute‘Simultaneously erudite and readable, Nowotny charts a route through techno-solutionism and dystopia to help us imagine a digital future that addresses human needs. Her previous work on time and uncertainty is brought to bear in this sharp analysis of the digital and the Anthropocene. Nowotny shows how our future depends on human wisdom guiding machine “smartness”.’​Sally Wyatt, Maastricht University‘Humankind has mechanized energy processing, leading to transformations so broad as to be termed industrial revolutions. We are now mechanizing the processing of information, a notion more subtle, and closer to the core of the human condition. This calls for multidisciplinary scholarship. Helga Nowotny’s wise work exposes questions, sharpens perception, and inspires action.’Bernhard Schölkopf, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Tübingen‘A fascinating and timely meditation. Nowotny… throws out provocative questions and does not become too prescriptive — the mark of a good book.’Nature

• AcknowledgementsIntroduction A personal journey into digi-land Chapter 1 Life in the digital time machineChapter 2 Welcome to the mirror worldChapter 3 The quest for public happiness and the narrative of progress Chapter 4 Future needs wisdomChapter 5 Disruption: from B.C. (before COVID-19) to A.D. (after domestication) References