iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

New preprint: “The Making of the Data Working Class”, where I critique AI capital-driven narratives and examine the rising visibility & mobilization of data workers, emerging as a global working class alongside tech workers, often seen as a digital middle class. Open access: hal.science/hal-05742364

The making of the data working class cover

The making of the data working class abstract

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Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.blacksky.app · 23/09/2026

there was a time I took jack clark seriously, im embarrassed to say

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I was on France24 to discuss the n-th case of fear-driven marketing stunt by Jacob Coxon &co. Yes, we need more AI regulation. But also basic education for those who build it. Maybe a crash course in avoiding lazy tropes of killer tech and Oppenheimer wannabes trying to stop it? youtu.be/GMDXSke46l0

youtu.be

AI doomsday warnings trigger calls to regulate • FRANCE 24 English

YouTube video by FRANCE 24 English

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Daniel Bachman @danielbachman.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Outsourcing AI oversight jobs powered by fracked methane gas to people living in the regions that will be destabilized by climate breakdown first…

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Democracy Now! @democracynow.org · 27/08/2026

Julián Posada, a professor at Yale University, speaks about AI data work that is outsourced to Venezuela. The workers, some of whom are paid as little as 50 cents per hour, “would not know who the employers were or what even the AI they were helping develop is.”

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Democracy Now! @democracynow.org · 27/08/2026

“Data workers are today's factory workers,” says Antonio Casilli (@casilli.bsky.social), professor at the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. These workers train AI and maintain machines and are “really poorly paid,” says Casilli.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Watch me live today on Democracy Now! I’ll be talking about AI and global supply chains, and how data workers are organizing around the world. We’ll also discuss my book, Waiting for Robots, and our documentary, In the Belly of AI. Live today at 8 AM NYC / 1 PM London. www.democracynow.org

democracynow.org

Democracy Now!

A daily TV/radio news program, hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, pioneering the largest community media collaboration in the U.S.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Great news folks! I've been selected by Villa Albertine, to talk at SXSW. Now I need your help. It'll take you exactly 3 minutes (I timed it): - create an account: id.sxsw.com/sign_up - go to my proposal: participate.sxsw.com/flow/sxsw/sx... - put a ❤️ (top-right corner) Deadline: Aug. 23, 2026.

It Takes a Planet (and Millions of Workers) to Make AI

Description
AI is viewed as capital alone: big investments, powerful models, visionary entrepreneurs. That's only part of the story. AI is also built from human labor and natural resources, much of it from the Global South. You've seen the headlines: Kenyan workers paid $1.34/hour to train ChatGPT, billions of gallons of water for datacenters, lithium mining in South America. This session hands you one framework to connect these scattered pieces. The vision of AI as a chain of capital, land, and labor is now sparking new resistance movements that unite workers, citizens, and environmental activists.

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Clément Ollivier @clement-ollivier.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

🔴 L’IA, « chaîne de valeur industrielle globalisée » : ouvrir le capot par le devoir de vigilance des entreprises Avec Antonio @casilli.bsky.social, sociologue, Baptiste Delmas, juriste, et Christine Chiffre de la @cgtcadrestechs.bsky.social cc @eurocadres.bsky.social ▶️ li.sten.to/perspectives...

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

For once, I’m playing on home turf, as I’m interviewed by the science magazine of Institut Polytechnique de Paris. I reflect on my work as a researcher and my commitment as a conscientious objector while warmongers co-opt every use of AI. www.polytechnique-insights.com/en/columns/d...

polytechnique-insights.com

Behind every algorithm: the unseen workers powering AI

Behind every algorithm: the unseen workers powering AI – Read the column on Polytechnique Insights

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

Delighted to see the South Korean edition of my book out in the world. My first thanks go to publisher E-sang Books and to translator Byun Jung-soo. It’s been… hem, strange to see the positive attention the book has received in newspapers over the last few days… (Post continues in caption)

It’s been… hem, strange to see the positive attention the book has received in newspapers over the last few days, from centre-left The Hankyoreh to conservative중앙일보 JoongAng Ilbo and even the decidedly right-wing The Dong-A Ilbo (동아일보). Don’t get me wrong: as an author, that’s gratifying. But as someone who still thinks political categories matter, it is also slightly unsettling. Perhaps the book reads less radical than I thought.

Luckily, there was also this photo.

The person who shared it with me insisted that it showed a seven-feet-tall 3D display of my book in a bookstore. I was skeptical. A giant promotional installation seemed somewhat unlikely for a 500-page academic essay.

Looking closer at the picture (and looking up the bookstore where it was taken) reassured me. The book cover appears enormous only because the photograph was taken as a closeup from above the counter. Not any counter. That’s Gnal, the legendary Seoul National University bookstore.

Gnal is the last remaining brick and mortar venue in Korea specializing in the humanities and social sciences, and it played an important role in the student movement of the 1980s and ‘90s. At one point, its owner Kim Dong-Woo was detained under the accusation of selling “subversive books”. He was released only after fierce student protests.

The name Gnal comes from a poem by Shim Hoon and roughly means “When That Day Comes.” I can’t help noticing the paradoxical resonance between that name and the Korean title of my book: “The Robots Are Not Coming”. Automated dystopia will not prevail, while the hope for a more humane future is more resilient as long as someone is still animated by the unyielding refusal to give up on society.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

The Korean translation of my book "Waiting or Robots" will be available in bookstores next week. I especially like the way the title has been rendered: “Robots Will Not Come. The myth of automation and the hidden truth of human labor” (로봇은 오지 않는다 자동화 신화와 은폐된 인간 노동의 진실) 👌🎯

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

L’IA est au cœur des 23 Md€ annoncés par Macron au sommet de Nairobi. Mais combien iront aux “ouvriers de la donnée” qui produisent réellement cette IA ? Dans mon entretien pour La Vie Ouvrière, je reviens sur les nouvelles formes d’exploitation derrière plateformes et LLM. nvo.fr/les-ouvriers...

nvo.fr

Les « ouvriers de la donnée », nouveau prolétariat 2.0 : entretien avec le sociologue Antonio A. Casilli – La Vie Ouvrière

Sociologue et professeur à l’Institut polytechnique de Paris, Antonio A. Casilli a publié plusieurs ouvrages sur l’intelligence artificielle, dont « En attendant les robots : enquête sur le travail du...

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Spent a week in Nairobi speaking with data workers, organizers, activists. One story dominated every conversation: Sama, a major data annotation and moderation company, laid off 1000+ workers. Behind AI, a new “data working class” is organizing. My interview with RFI: www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/2...

rfi.fr

IA au Kenya: derrière les entreprises de sous-traitance, l'essor d'une nouvelle classe ouvrière

Au Kenya, la société Sama, sous-traitant de Meta, a annoncé mi-avril 2026 le licenciement de plus d’un millier d’employés à Nairobi après la rupture de son contrat avec le groupe américain. Cette déci...

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Data Labelers Association. @datalabelers.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

This #LabourDay, we honor the workers behind AI—often unseen, always essential. This year’s theme calls for stronger protections and worker-centered innovation. The cancellation of #RightsCon2026 under unclear circumstances is a setback for accountability and dialogue.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

L’IA come nuova forma di colonialismo occidentale, senza frontiere o perimetri perché lo sfruttamento riguarda tutto: terra, corpi, risorse naturali e vite umane. Il #1maggio alle 11.00 ne parlo su Rai Radio3. www.raiplaysound.it/programmi/ra...

raiplaysound.it

Radio3 Mondo | Rai Radio 3 | RaiPlay Sound

Radio3 mondo offre quotidianamente una scelta ragionata degli articoli delle maggiori testate straniere nella rassegna stampa in onda alle 6.50. E continua a parlare di mondo con i suoi protagonisti a...

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Miriam Posner @miriamposner.com · 27/04/2026

Theme: AI Supply Chains

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

🚨D-7 The call for papers for INDL-9 is still open—until April 30, 2026. This time our annual conference will be hosted on Sept 9–11, 2026 at the International Labour Organization (ILO), Geneva. www.indl.network/indl-9/ cc. @ubiquity75.xyz @posada.website @milamiceli.bsky.social #ai #work #labor

INDL-9 conference cfp submit until 30 April 2026

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Le jeudi 9 avril j’interviendrai à l’Assemblée Nationale pour décrypter les atteintes aux droits humains dont sont victimes les ouvriers et ouvrières de la donnée, et interroger les responsabilités qu’elles engagent. Dernières inscriptions par ici : 3a4c7c38.sibforms.com/serve/MUIFAJ...

Conférence Antonio Casilli Assemblée nationale

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

INDL-NA, the North American chapter of our International Network on Digital Labor, holds the 𝗦𝘆𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘂𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝗟𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗜, hosted at Yale University in April. The event, organized by @posada.website, opens with a keynote by Julia Ticona. Register here: www.eventbrite.com/e/internatio...

eventbrite.com

International Network on Digital Labor-North America

Join our inaugural North America symposium to hear about “Workers Building, Using, and Resisting AI.”

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

J’ai le plaisir d’être l’invité du tout premier épisode du nouveau podcast Cyber Revolution. J’échange avec Hugo Pompougnac, président de l’association Espaces Marx, autour de mon travail avec l’équipe DiPLab sur les ouvrier•ères des données qui produisent nos IA. youtu.be/gO1D6s8G7zA?...

youtu.be

Avec Antonio CASILLI, comprendre LE TRAVAIL DERRIÈRE L'IA

YouTube video by Cyber Révolution

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Mardi 17 mars, 18h, mon séminaire "Le 'travail du clic'. Interroger le geste productif et ses implications pour la subjectivité politique des travailleurs de l’IA", examinera le concept dans une perspective historique. - en présence : 54 bd Raspail, 75006 Paris, Salle AS1_24 - Zoom : merci de me DM

Séminaire EHESS histoire du travail du clic

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Anthropic new report on AI's labor impact. Their own data show no measurable increase in unemployment. Also, they admit their framework is "most useful when effects are ambiguous." Ambiguity, like fear, is a tool for preempting labor organizing. www.anthropic.com/research/lab...

anthropic.com

Labor market impacts of AI: A new measure and early evidence

Anthropic is an AI safety and research company that's working to build reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Malgré les frappes, Careem, Uber Eats et Deliveroo ont continué leurs livraisons au Moyen-Orient, mettant les livreurs en danger. Management algorithmique et précarité font d’eux de la chair à canon numérique, illustrant le lien direct entre guerre et capitalisme. www.wired.me/story/with-m...

wired.me

With Missile Attacks Overhead, Delivery Drivers Are Still On The Road

Missile and drone attacks across the Gulf have disrupted daily life, but delivery drivers are still diligently navigating streets to drop off orders across the region.

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Popolitique @popolitique.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

A deux doigts de penser que les jedi anti-sith sont les vrais sith. Une BD inspirée en partie de plusieurs strips du maître jedi @tienstiens.bsky.social

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Glossaire d'éducation populaire sur l'IA, les problèmes sociaux, les retombées politiques, les alternatives possibles. Conçu pour enseignants, formateurs, travailleurs sociaux et journalistes et quiconque souhaite aller au-delà des discours dominants. iaep.be

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

India AI Impact Summit is coming to a close. I was interviewed on France24 (English) about data centers, data work, sovereignty-as-a-service in the Global South. youtu.be/-bUBWFSVsoo?... World leaders, CEOs discuss AI governance at India summit: Who owns AI ?

youtu.be

World leaders, CEOs discuss AI governance at India summit: Who owns AI ? • FRANCE 24 English

YouTube video by FRANCE 24 English

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Podcast Radio3Scienza ft my interview (in Italian) about RentAHuman: hype, scam, or vibe coding experiment? My bet: in 2 months, it’ll turn out that all matching workers-tasks is done “by hand” (by humans and not by agentic AI) and we’ll never hear about it again. www.raiplaysound.it/audio/2026/0...

raiplaysound.it

Radio3 Scienza | S2026 | Affitta un umano | Rai Radio 3 | RaiPlay Sound

Affitta un umano - Radio3 Scienza - "Affittare" un essere umano per consegnare un mazzo di fiori, ascoltare un podcast o attaccare volantini: è il servizio che offre la piattaforma RentAHuman, in cui ...

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l'Humanité @humanite.fr · 28/01/2026

Antonio Casilli : « Avec l’IA, Capgemini transforme son plan de licenciement en argument marketing » ➡️ l.humanite.fr/6Lx

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

Ieri sera Le Iene, popolare trasmissione di inchiesta della televisione italiana, ha mandato in onda la prima parte di un servizio di approfondimento sulle condizioni lavorative di chi addestra l’IA. Nel servizio anche la mia analisi, che condivido per raccontare questa realtà sommersa.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

We are kicking off 2026 with a new report! The comprehensive study "Data Work in Egypt: Who Are the Workers Behind Artificial Intelligence?" conducted by the DiPLab research collective, provides the first in-depth examination of Egyptian data workers. diplab.eu/diplab-relea...

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The Debate - France 24 @f24debate.france24.com · 22/12/2025

“Leisure has been colonized by work” says Institut polytechnique de Paris' @casilli.bsky.social Monday’s #F24Debate looks at the future of free time in the age of technology - and asks whether we ever truly clock off. Tune in at 7.10PM Paris Time at france24.com/en/live

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Irénée Régnauld @ireneer.bsky.social · 10/12/2025

Un témoignage à la première personne de Michael Geoffrey Abuyabo Asia, ancien modérateur de chats "intimes" avec des IA (« AI companions »), depuis les bidonvilles de Nairobi. Vertigineuses questions sur le travail émotionnel et le consentement. Via @casilli.bsky.social data-workers.org/michael/

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Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.blacksky.app · 29/11/2025

yes, i can assure you this is fraudulent research

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Jathan Sadowski @jathansadowski.com · 29/11/2025

Yet another prime case of Potemkin AI. I hate seeing an “AI notetaker” in a zoom call recording everything. In some cases, these notetakers were literally just a guy writing everything down. We too often see vaporous hype leading to the credulous embrace of fraudulent systems.

Sam Udotong in - 1st
Co-founder & CTO at Fireflies.ai
10h •
•••
We charged $100/month for an Al that was really just two guys surviving on pizza.
We scaled Fireflies to a $1B valuation after 6 failures from our original crypto food delivery idea.
Nothing motivates you more than the pressure of living month to month with no safety net.
Before I explain how 2 broke guys validated a $1B idea, you need to understand we were couch surfing while desperately chasing our entrepreneurial dreams. An Al notetaker was our last hope after 6 ideas our friends claimed were "genius".
The best way to validate your business idea is by becoming the product yourself.
We told our customers there's an "Al that'll join a meeting." In reality it was just me and my co-founder calling in to the meeting sitting there silently and taking notes by hand.
When customers scheduled a meeting, we'd manually dial in as "Fred from Fireflies.ai" We'd sit there silently, take detailed notes, and send them 10 minutes later. After taking notes for 100+ meetings (and falling asleep in many), we were finally able to make enough money to pay the $750/month rent for a tiny SF living room. That was the point when we said let's stop and automate everything.
The best prototype was 2 guys surviving on pizza. Validation before automation saved us from our 7th failure.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

Il 20 nov al CSOA Forte Prenestino ci sarà la proiezione del documentario “In the Belly of AI” (Nel Ventre dell’Intelligenza Artificiale”, regia di Henri Poulain), basato sulle mie ricerche e di cui sono coautore. Podcast della mia intervista su Radio Onda Rossa. www.casilli.fr/2025/11/16/p...

casilli.fr

[Podcast] Presenting our documentary ‘In the Belly of AI’ on Radio Onda Rossa | Antonio A. Casilli

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 15/11/2025

It’s been an incredible week in Istanbul. I presented our documentary “In the Belly of AI” at the Cooperative AI conference, discussed recent DiPLab research at the TÜFRAM seminar at Marmara university, enjoyed time with old & new friends, indulged in my unabashed passion for anything Byzantine.

Antonio A. Casilli keynote at the Cooperative AI conference, Istanbul Planlama Ajansı.

XIV century mosaic at The Chora (Kariye Camii), Istanbul.

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Padre Pio @padrepio.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

"Gneugneugneu la neutralité des IA c'est que des outils"

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 12/11/2025

If Sam Altman claimed something about a past event — say, a date or a historical episode — would you take his word for it, or would you double-check the facts elsewhere? Then why take him at his word when he talks about things that haven’t happened yet?

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This skeet will self destruct @pardoguerra.bsky.social · 10/11/2025

We have these huge conferences in expensive cities with titles that overshoot actual achievements by a light year or two (I don't think many of the workers at the hotel in Chicago had their work "Reimagined", for example)

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

Sovereignty, justice, and sustainability meet AI infrastructures in places with long histories of political experimentation and environmental struggles—like Chile. On Nov. 21, 3pm, come to our DiPLab seminar ft. Prof. Martin Tironi, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile: diplab.eu/martin-tiron...

DiPLab seminar Martin tironi 21 Nov 2025, ISC-PIF, Paris, 3pm CET.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 02/11/2025

Today marks the 20th anniversary of Amazon MTurk, launched on Nov 2, 2005, to pioneer “artificial artificial intelligence”: using 500,000 underpaid workers to annotate, review, imitate AI. What a difference 20 years makes! Today they’re still underpaid but there are tens of millions of them.

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Casilli @casilli.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

Quand il s’agit d’IA, le catastrophisme est une branche du marketing.

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Olivier Tesquet @oliviertesquet.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

Cette critique du bouquin d'Eliezer Yudkowsky, tête de pont des doomers de l'IA, met le doigt où il faut : ces Cassandre ne s'inquiètent pas des effets sociaux politiques ou économiques de la technologie ; ils sont seulement obsédés par le temps et sa fin. www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2025/1...

newstatesman.com

The guru of the AI apocalypse

Eliezer Yudkowsky is confusing a very human obsession with death and a very modern fear of a techno-deity

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