Democracy and data have a complicated relationship. Under the influence of big data and artificial intelligence, some democracies are being transformed, for better or worse, as relations between citizens, political parties, governments, and corporations are being redrawn.

Artificial Democracy explores the ways in which data collection and analytics, and their application, are changing political practices, government policies, and even democratic polities themselves. With an international roster of multidisciplinary contributors, this highly topical collection takes a comprehensive approach to big data’s effect on democracy, from the use of micro-targeting in electoral campaigns to the clash between privacy and surveillance in the name of protecting society.

Artificial Democracy tackles both the dangers and the potentially desirable changes made possible by the symbiosis of big data and artificial intelligence. It explores shifts in how we conceptualize the citizen–government relationship and asks important questions about where we could be heading.