Platform Extractivism

"A grounded and uncompromising account of the infrastructures and workers that sustain artificial intelligence. Posada makes clear that platforms are not neutral tools, but engines of extraction."--Mark Graham, coauthor of Feeding the Machine: The Hidden Human Labor Powering A.I.

"Platform Extractivism is a tour de force, moving adeptly from stories of the data workers behind contemporary AI systems to empirical analysis and theory. This book demonstrates conclusively that our AI systems perpetuate long-standing dynamics of resource extraction, colonialism, and wealth accumulation. But Julián Posada shows that it doesn't have to be that way as he explores pathways toward more just and livable futures for data workers. Platform Extractivism is required reading."--Catherine D'Ignazio, Director, Data + Feminism Lab, and Associate Professor of Urban Science and Planning, MIT

"Platform Extractivism tears apart the promises of AI's global benefits. It exposes how the industry profits from the precarious economies, cheap labor, territories, public infrastructure, and knowledge of the Global South."--Paola Ricaurte Quijano, cofounder, Tierra Común network