To be published with Taylor & Francis, New York.

We are having an existential crisis. Over a very short period, a rapid and tumultuous technological transformation of our societies has triggered a self-exploratory public debate about what it means to be human, our potential, powers and place in the modern world. Latest the impact of generative AI, such as the large language model ChatGPT or the image-generating AI system DALL E, has reverberated across all societal domains fiercely debated among policymakers, educators, artists, filmmakers, authors, technologists and academics: Are humans really just “outdated software” in dire need of a technological fix? Will a culture of machines out-compete a culture of humanity?

In Human Power – A Technology Politics for Humanity Gry Hasselbalch places the distinctiveness of humanity back at the centre of the public discussion. Challenging the notion that external technological agencies, such as AI, can solve our human problems and biases, arguing that such ideas ignore the potential of the complex and situated nature of human power.

In the book she investigates “human power” in theory and practice illustrating how it differs fundamentally from the power of machines. It is the result of several years of dedicated academic research and further develops and explores the conception of a “human approach” and “human power” presented in Gry’s last book Data Ethics of Power (published in 2021). Weaving together theories on humans, society and technology with her extensive experience from technology politics and deep interest for human cultural expression.

In seven chapters, seven traits of human power are explored with examples and narratives from arts, literature, theatre, film, music, interviews with artists and policymakers, and by combining existing social, cultural and political theories on each trait. Ultimately, creating a synthesis of these languages and expressions of human power, representing a pivotal and urgently necessary common human voice in current technology debates.

Watch Gry’s Distinguished AI Lecture based on the book at the U.S. Argonne National Laboratory: