You can always rely on James Bridle for incisive critical writing on the tech industry, and “The Conspiracy of the Algorithm” in issue 49 is no exception.

As algorithmic systems encompass more domains, people’s agency is diminished, but conspiracy theories provide them with a false sense of control. It brings to mind writing from Tim Maughan on the algorithms shaping the global financial and shipping industries, and how little human input is driving them. But there’s also the algorithms of platforms like YouTube that know that if we’re served extreme content, we’ll be more likely to stop, watch, and generate ad revenue.

The question is how to address those issues, and Bridle’s potential solutions challenged some of my thinking on the matter. I often see them through a structural lens, recognizing individuals can do little to alter them and it will instead require collective struggle and state power. Bridle emphasizes the importance of calling out corporate actors, but he also explains how teaching people some coding techniques and other skills can make them feel they’re regaining some of their lost agency, something I would’ve previously been more likely to dismiss. I also welcome his positive example of citizens’ assemblies, though setting them up will require some shift in the current balance of power. No surprise, this will be an essay I’ll be thinking about for some time to come.