The Power of Poor AI: Exploring the Potential for Defiance and the Nature of Disruption

Abstract This article explores the concept of “Poor AI,” drawing inspiration from Hito Steyerl’s notion of “Poor Images,” and examines the hidden digital labor within artificial intelligence (AI) development, revealing how AI systems, fueled by data collected from the digital proletariat, shape a force with the potential to disrupt established norms and challenge hierarchies. The hidden labor behind AI’s efficiency and its alignment with capitalist interests is uncovered. This investigation sheds light on the paradox of AI’s power, which simultaneously empowers and diminishes human agency, and its acceleration of inequality within the digital economy.