Challenging AI Ideologies for a Pro-Society Innovation Framework

Addiction Economy Thought for Today - Marietje Schaake is right - Lobbying is bad for democracy, but also for a 'pro-society' approach to innovation. (BTW, 'Undermining Policy Action through lobbying, legal action and other tactics is the last of our 5 Drivers of the Addiction Economy.)

Big tech mantra that 'regulation will stifle innovation' must be ignored by regulators, who must also see through the self-interest & ideology to put the public interest ahead of purely commercial concerns. When it constrains the market for harmful products, regulation can also, if well designed, liberate the market for products which benefit people and not just companies.

We had a letter in the FT on 11 April 2023 drawing attention to the unhelpful focus on ideology:

"Anjana Ahuja is right Profit has consistently been put before the health and wellbeing of people in terms of policy and regulation. In addition to the junk food, cigarettes and alcohol mentioned in the article, social media, gambling, opioids and the new disposable vapes targeted at children, all have a business model deliberately designed to addict their customers.

The problem is rooted in three entrenched ideologies, which need confronting.

The first ideology is neoliberal capitalism, which prioritises a right to make money over human rights, environmental sustainability and the good of society as a whole. Damage to individuals and society is actively incentivised by a system that allows companies to take the money and leave the externalities for individuals and governments to deal with.

The second is innovation as an ideology. Innovation is now not a simple description — “the introduction of new things, ideas, or ways of doing something” (Oxford English Dictionary). It is focused on science and technology-driven products, which it enshrines as intrinsically “a good thing”. Innovation as ideology believes that nothing should get in its way and anyone suggesting otherwise is anti-business and anti-progress.

The third ideology is the belief that regulation stifles innovation. Bad regulation stifles innovation. Good regulation, as the article proposes, shepherds those things, ideas and ways of doing something to inspire and motivate economic, social and environmental benefit and prevent or mitigate their harms.

It is useful to remember that these ideologies are not laws of nature, they are themselves just a collection of ideas that seemed like a sensible idea at the time. The good news is that there are plenty of new ideas for how, let’s call it, a “pro-society” approach to innovation, investment and regulation can be achieved. Now seems like a good time to start taking those ideas very seriously. "

Our White Paper on The Economic Drivers of the Addiction Economy is here and we are writing a book which we hope will have ideas on new approaches!