Rethinking AI: Power, Surveillance, and Democracy

Abstract

This study critically examines the development trajectory of artificial intelligence (AI), challenging dominant narratives that frame AI as a neutral or inevitable technological progression. Drawing on and extending theoretical frameworks such as Feenberg’s critical theory of technology, Zuboff’s surveillance capitalism, and Acemoglu’s democratic erosion, the paper introduces the concept of algorithmic hegemony to explain how AI is increasingly shaped by concentrated power structures, institutional displacement, and ideological imperatives. Through a critical interpretive analysis of global investment flows, sectoral imbalances, and transparency deficits, the study reveals that AI is being developed primarily by a narrow coalition of private corporations and authoritarian states. This ecosystem marginalizes academia, civil society, and democratic oversight. The findings highlight a shift of epistemic authority from public institutions to private interests, the deployment of AI systems for surveillance and behavioural control, and the erosion of civic agency in digital governance. By synthesizing empirical data with normative critique, the study offers a multidimensional theoretical contribution and calls for a paradigmatic shift toward society-centered AI governance. The proposed concept of algorithmic hegemony provides a new lens to understand the political economy of AI and its implications for democracy, justice, and public interest.