malteengeler on Nostr: With fascism back on the main stage and big tech CEOs paving its way with money and ...

With fascism back on the main stage and big tech CEOs paving its way with money and support I can only repeat my recommendation for "Resisting AI - An Anti-Fascist Approach To Artificial Intelligence" by danmcquillan (npub16wc…ehf0).



I don't think it is an exaggeration when I say that Dan's book is one of the most influential books about so-called "AI". This is even more impressive when taken into account that it was published in 2022, years ahead of today's wave of books about "AI criticism". Dan's book is unique because he combines a clear political perspective with a deep understanding of the technology. The result is the most precise analysis of "AI" as a social and political project I read so far and that I still come back to as the most valuable piece of writing in this field.



When you hear Dan talk you will hear the anecdote that he originally intended to write a book about possible "good use cases" for so-called "AI". He failed. And the result became this book instead. What stuck with me most is the final chapter where he talks about what so-called "AI" might be useful for under better social circumstances. There ist one sentence that I have quoted countless times since. Dan writes:



"It’s highly unlikely that this new apparatus will simply be a repurposing of existing AI for progressive social ends."



Given the many, many voices that (intentionally or not) are trying to salvage "AI" as a mean for social progress in one form or the other, Dan's books dares to remind us that "NO" can be a perfectly valid reaction to "AI" and technology in general.



Read the book it if you want to read THE book about "AI". Read it if you want to read about how to analyse technology in general. And read it if you just want to read a book that is inspiringly unconcerned with satisfying any expectation of conformity with the status quo.