In Rewiring Democracy, authors Bruce Schneier and Nathan E. Sanders frame democracy as an information‑processing system, where citizens’ preferences are collected, aggregated, and turned into collective decisions. They argue that as information technologies evolve, especially AI, the way democracies function will change fundamentally — not just in tools, but in the underlying processes of decision-making, governance, and citizen participation.
AI brings four core capabilities that could reshape democracy: speed (faster processing), scale (handling many cases or data points at once), scope (ability to work across diverse tasks), and sophistication (processing complexity beyond human capacity). These traits could help governments draft complex legislation, enforce regulations efficiently, streamline bureaucratic processes like tax filings or welfare claims, and make judicial or administrative decisions more responsive.
However, the book warns that these same strengths can be misused. Without proper governance — including transparent public‑interest AI systems, regulation of private AI, and citizen oversight — AI could concentrate power in the hands of a few, erode accountability, and accelerate authoritarian tendencies.
The authors emphasize that AI is not inherently good or bad; its impact depends on how societies choose to deploy and govern it. Properly used, AI could make democracy more responsive and efficient, but without careful oversight, it could undermine the very foundations of democratic governance.
