‘Big Tech–Big State politics’ come of age: Dispatches from the archives

In this article, we explore the spatial–political implications of an emergent Big Tech–Big State power axis and the anti-democratic authority it looks to wield. Drawing on participant-observation research within spaces identifying as fully inclusive, we argue that this public–private partnership must be understood as a burgeoning advocacy project that is ‘working’ the intersection of two domains: (1) blockchain-facilitated financial services and (2) human rights advocacy, law, and norms. Based on a joint revisiting of our research archives, we observe a synchronicity between: (a) advocacy of ‘digital’ rights-for-all and (b) ‘universal access’ to blockchain-based finance. This convergence of word and deed signals the embedding of what we call polycentric internet governmentality ; ‘global consensus building’ consultations in which Big Tech manifests as an accredited political actor in ways that that go beyond the business sector's presence in inter-governmental or civil society-hosted consultations on media/internet – and now – digital/tech governance. When considered in tandem, the extra-judicial power at play over time is thrown into relief in both cases. We call for a re-conceptualization of the states–internet–markets nexus that undergirds internet/tech governance; as research fields, policymaking spaces, and political arenas.