Slaves to the Algorithms? Algocracy and republican liberty, with Robert Sparrow

In this seminar Professor Robert Sparrow explores the political and ethical dangers of algocracy: the use of algorithms and artificial intelligence in government decision-making. Drawing on republican political theory, especially the idea of liberty as non-domination, Professor Sparrow asks whether even highly effective AI systems might threaten democratic freedom by making government decisions harder to contest, weakening civic virtues, and expanding the power of surveillance and control. The seminar is followed by a time of questions and discussion. A video version of the seminar is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eDyVNWz1qo The seminar took place over Zoom on 26 May 2026, and was hosted by Christopher Watkin (Monash University), as part of the project "Rewriting the Social Contract: Technology, Ecology, Extremism". This seminar is an initiative of the Social Contract Research Network. To be notified when future seminars, conversations and interviews are uploaded, you can subscribe to te SCRN YouTube channel by clicking on this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq7geWYdmGE3kIcJrw8Ebsw?sub_confirmation=1