"You Must Become An Algorithmic Problem"

Jose Marichal, PhD, will discuss his new book, You Must Become An Algorithmic Problem (Bristol University Press, 2025). This incisive book explores the unspoken agreement we have with tech companies. In exchange for reducing the anxiety of an increasingly complex online world, we submit to algorithmic classification and predictability. This reduces incentives for us to become “algorithmic problems” with dire consequences for liberal democracy. Marichal calls for a movement to demand that algorithms promote play, creativity and potentiality rather than conformity. This book is a must-read for anyone navigating the intersection of technology, politics and identity in an increasingly data-driven world.