The golden thread of AI subalternity: epistemic activism

Abstract

There is a rising tide of initiatives countering predominant AI practices and narratives. The social and environmental consequences of AI-dedicated data centres; the death, injury and human displacement involving AI-enabled lethal autonomous weapons; and the corrosion of educational institutions via the adoption of generative AI tools are just a few targets of diverse initiatives taking a stance against AI. However, these initiatives are generally siloed; they do not constitute a single movement but a fragmented patchwork. In this paper, I draw on Gramsci’s Prison Notebooks to make the case for unity among those running such initiatives, whom I call “AI subalterns.” Drawing on literature on epistemic injustice, I confront the AI subaltern with “ruling AI authorities”; those from the ruling classes with the ability to speak about AI with authority and thus perpetrate epistemic injustice. I argue that epistemic activism constitutes a key weapon in the AI subaltern’s arsenal, and that recognising how it is wielded by peers may help develop a sense of political consciousness. I show how the resulting unity among AI subalterns meets the criteria Gramsci sets out when describing how subalterns have historically coordinated successful political uprisings.