Istället för IT: AI - En kritisk litteraturstudie om plattformisering, data och styrning i den digitala ekonomin
(2026) ABMM54 20261Division of ALM, Digital Cultures and Publishing Studies
- Abstract
- The purpose of this master thesis is to explore how platformization and artificial intelligence are reshaping power and governance in the digital economy, with a particular focus on the relationship between private technology companies and the public sector. Governments and institutions often present AI as necessary for innovation, economic growth, and efficiency, while researchers and representatives from the civil society raise concerns about transparency, democratic accountability, inequality, and human rights. The public debate is consequently shaped by an ongoing tension between technological innovation and democratic values, particularly as legal and regulatory frameworks struggle to keep up with the rapid development of digital... (More)
- The purpose of this master thesis is to explore how platformization and artificial intelligence are reshaping power and governance in the digital economy, with a particular focus on the relationship between private technology companies and the public sector. Governments and institutions often present AI as necessary for innovation, economic growth, and efficiency, while researchers and representatives from the civil society raise concerns about transparency, democratic accountability, inequality, and human rights. The public debate is consequently shaped by an ongoing tension between technological innovation and democratic values, particularly as legal and regulatory frameworks struggle to keep up with the rapid development of digital platforms and AI systems. Through a critical capitalistic lens, the thesis argues that these developments should not only be understood as technological progress, but also as political and economic processes connected to capital accumulation and the growing concentration of control over digital infrastructures, data, and AI systems. The study combines a critical literature review with a qualitative case study, and the theoretical framework draws on Michel Foucault’s concepts on power, surveillance, governmentality and knowledge. The study shows that digital platforms increasingly function as infrastructures that shape organizational processes, decision making, and institutional dependencies. As public institutions become more reliant on systems controlled by private companies, new forms of dependency emerge and the balance of power between public and private actors begins to shift. Within this context, data increasingly functions as a form of capital and a central economic asset within the digital economy. Overall, the thesis argues that the growing integration of AI and platform infrastructures into public institutions raises questions about transparency, democratic accountability, inequality, and individual as well as societal autonomy. Lastly, the study suggests that one of the key challenges of the digital economy is that societies are increasingly organized through technological systems that people and institutions depend on, albeit with limited opportunities to fully understand or critically examine. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9229673
- author
- Andersson, Linnéa LU
- supervisor
-
- Tanja Wiehn LU
- organization
- alternative title
- Instead of IT:AI - A critical literature review on platformization, data and governance in the digital economy
- course
- ABMM54 20261
- year
- 2026
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Keywords Library and Information Science, Platformization, Data as capital, Power and governance, Artificial intelligence, Digital Capitalism, Public sector, Political economy Nyckelord Biblioteks- och informationsvetenskap, Plattformisering, data som kapital, Makt och styrning, Artificiell intelligens, Digital kapitalism, Offentlig sektor, Politisk ekonomi
- language
- Swedish
- id
- 9229673
- date added to LUP
- 2026-06-16 09:31:45
- date last changed
- 2026-06-16 09:31:45
@misc{9229673,
abstract = {{The purpose of this master thesis is to explore how platformization and artificial intelligence are reshaping power and governance in the digital economy, with a particular focus on the relationship between private technology companies and the public sector. Governments and institutions often present AI as necessary for innovation, economic growth, and efficiency, while researchers and representatives from the civil society raise concerns about transparency, democratic accountability, inequality, and human rights. The public debate is consequently shaped by an ongoing tension between technological innovation and democratic values, particularly as legal and regulatory frameworks struggle to keep up with the rapid development of digital platforms and AI systems. Through a critical capitalistic lens, the thesis argues that these developments should not only be understood as technological progress, but also as political and economic processes connected to capital accumulation and the growing concentration of control over digital infrastructures, data, and AI systems. The study combines a critical literature review with a qualitative case study, and the theoretical framework draws on Michel Foucault’s concepts on power, surveillance, governmentality and knowledge. The study shows that digital platforms increasingly function as infrastructures that shape organizational processes, decision making, and institutional dependencies. As public institutions become more reliant on systems controlled by private companies, new forms of dependency emerge and the balance of power between public and private actors begins to shift. Within this context, data increasingly functions as a form of capital and a central economic asset within the digital economy. Overall, the thesis argues that the growing integration of AI and platform infrastructures into public institutions raises questions about transparency, democratic accountability, inequality, and individual as well as societal autonomy. Lastly, the study suggests that one of the key challenges of the digital economy is that societies are increasingly organized through technological systems that people and institutions depend on, albeit with limited opportunities to fully understand or critically examine.}},
author = {{Andersson, Linnéa}},
language = {{swe}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Istället för IT: AI - En kritisk litteraturstudie om plattformisering, data och styrning i den digitala ekonomin}},
year = {{2026}},
}