Deconstructing the AI Myth: Fallacies and Harms of Algorithmification

Abstract

We are experiencing a massive and volatile expansion of AI-based products and services. The current intermeshing of digital technologies, people, and society is shaping how we live and bringing algorithms to the forefront of decision making. The algorithmification of society and the narratives used to make it appear inevitable serve specific interests, mostly profitable for and controlled by few actors. It is not AI in itself, but the utilitarian sophistication of optimisation mechanisms and the power structures behind them that profit from controlling all that we do, when and how we do it, our behaviours, and even ourselves. In education, this is of serious concern as academia is gradually moving to uncertain dependencies on corporate interests. This paper calls for radical changes in dealing with the AI narratives that have monopolised recent public debates and discussions. It sheds light on the key terminology surrounding today’s AI algorithms and the technological background that makes them possible. It shows examples of the negative impacts and the implications of not addressing or ignoring certain issues, especially in education. This paper also suggests good practices through consistent advocacy, grounded materials, and critical work on digital literacy, particularly AI literacy.