The Algorithmic State: Are We Sleepwalking into Digital Authoritarianism?

BIPSS Research Assistant Nabib Bin Zahid in his latest commentary titled “The Algorithmic State: Are We Sleepwalking into Digital Authoritarianism?”, explores how data-driven systems are quietly restructuring power. From surveillance infrastructures to algorithmic content control, these systems promise efficiency – but often operate with limited transparency and weak accountability. The concern isn’t just technological – it’s political. When decision-making shifts into opaque systems, who is actually in control? And more importantly, who gets to question it?