Bruce Schneier and Nathan E. Sanders
Rewiring Democracy: How AI Will Transform Our Politics, Government, and Citizenship
ISBN: 978-0-262-04994-8
Artificial Intelligence is a constantly changing field, and it probably occupies a good chunk of real estate in your startup and technology news feed. In the past couple of years, I have had some moderate exposure to the field, utilizing several different generative AI systems like ChatGPT, Grok, Claude, and Gemini. I run the same query through multiple systems to see where each has blind spots and which answers questions best based on the field of inquiry. As the models change, the “best” generative AI system changes frequently. If you’re using one and the model updates, it never hurts to try the others.
I have also used image generation technology through my Adobe subscription and through Grok before they limited the feature to paid subscribers. Of the generative AI use cases, image generation is probably the most fun. The same prompt given to Grok, OpenAI, and Adobe’s proprietary systems can generate wildly different results, some of which are more appropriate than others. I like to include an image with each post on my other blog, We Are All EntrePartners, and AI fills the gap when I don’t have an actual image to use with the topic of the post.
The current wave of AI startups and buildouts feels much like the dot-com boom of the late 1990s – lots of jockeying for position, lots of money being spent on physical infrastructure to power virtual products, and much of the technology being used in illicit ways. I was in high school during the dot-com boom, but I was fully engaged with the “shiny new technology” of the Internet as a consumer. Some people were writing books while things were happening, but most waited until the dust settled to put thoughts to paper. Bruce Schneier and Nathan Sanders’ book Rewiring Democracy: How AI Will Transform Our Politics, Government, and Citizenship seems like one of the few books attempting to write history while the battle rages.
There are a lot of points that the authors have right – artificial intelligence could be as helpful or harmful to “democracy” as the billions of dollars thrown at American elections; AI will be better used as an assistant rather than a replacement; and the technology will make mistakes along the way. They highlighted four ways that AI will serve as a great companion to the work that humans perform: it will be faster than humans, it will be able to work in multiple – nearly infinite – locations at one time, it will be able to do more things at one time than humans can, and it will be able to use more factors in decision-making than humans can. When utilized correctly, AI will fill roles not currently filled by humans; roles that may not exist just yet. If it replaces people, the technology advances won’t be any more deleterious than any other technological advancement. Fear-mongering at this point is unnecessary.
Unfortunately, the text was tinged with bias. It’s obvious where the authors stand politically, and it seemed to permeate the work. The real question that should have been asked throughout the book is whether our “democracy” has benefited people and how artificial intelligence, either generative or agentic AI, can help fight bad actors or assist good actors in the system. Can AI be used by non-partisan groups to help educate voters? Should AI be used in the vote counting process? Should the population worry about governments using surveillance technology infused with AI? Over the past few years, it’s become obvious that there is little difference between Team Blue and Team Red in the use of government against groups of people. Startups working in AI should consider focusing on leveling the playing field for ordinary people.
Overall, 6/10, would recommend to people looking for a basic primer on the history and progress of artificial intelligence – not specific technology, but certain use cases of the broader concept. Writing a history book during the battle is nearly impossible, and it seemed like this was the goal of the authors. I believe that the dust will settle in the next five years or so – one or more of the big players in AI will collapse based on the amount of money necessary to keep the industry going. I would love to see a second version of this book published after 2030, after the bubble bursts. Until then, let’s see how things play out, and maybe generate a few silly images along the way.
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