'AI' and Computer Science: Contradictions Emerge between Ideologies

2026-03-31

AI Summary

This study critically examines the social tensions arising from the entanglement of corporate and academic objectives in artificial intelligence development, interrogating who truly benefits from the prevailing “computation-as-empowerment” ideology. By systematically introducing ideological theory into the interdisciplinary space of AI and computer science for the first time, the work employs conceptual analysis and critical social theory—supported by historical and contemporary case studies—to deconstruct narratives of technological neutrality. It reveals the inherent tension between corporate-driven logics in AI industrialization and the public interest, centering its critique on the pivotal question: “Who is empowered?” In doing so, the research provides a theoretical foundation for envisioning more equitable and inclusive trajectories of technological development.

Technology Category

Philosophy and Ethics of AI: Bias, Fairness & EquityHumans and AI: Other Foundations of Human Computation & AIMachine Learning: Ethics, Bias, and Fairness

Application Category

Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: Fairness and ethical considerations in crowd work and in human-in-the-loop AI systemsSocial Networks and Social Media: Computational social scienceResponsible Web: Machine-in-the-loop, human agency and autonomy

Abstract

We develop a conceptualization of ideology, in which a system of ideas represents social, economic, and political relationships. We use ideology as a lens for understanding and critiquing intersecting social, economic, and political aspects of how 'AI' technologies are being developed. We observe ideological shifts. We question that the present tangling of corporate and university objectives is beneficial to labor, particularly computer science students, and the general public. Corporations and computer science have a history of marketing the ideology of computing as empowerment. However, with intensification of the production of 'AI', contradictions emerge. We ask, "Who is being empowered?"

Problem

• AI
• ideology
• computer science
• empowerment
• corporate-university collaboration

Innovation

• ideology
• artificial intelligence
• corporate-university entanglement
• computing empowerment
• critical AI studies