Jill Lepore on the ‘Artificial State’ and why Silicon Valley’s leaders are bad sci-fi readers

Historian Jill Lepore has developed a compelling thesis regarding the grandiose rhetoric employed by modern tech giants. According to the Pulitzer Prize-winning Harvard scholar and New Yorker contributor, these companies frequently frame their product launches and policy shifts as if they are establishing sovereign governing bodies. Whether it is the historical branding of Twitter as a "town hall in your pocket" or the implementation of a "constitution" for Anthropic’s Claude, Lepore suggests that Silicon Valley’s self-perception is increasingly at odds with democratic reality.

The Rise of the Artificial State

In her forthcoming book, The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State, Lepore examines how technology firms are incrementally usurping the traditional roles of democratic institutions. From Facebook’s role in the decline of local journalism to Twitter’s distortion of political discourse, she argues that tech leaders often conflate technological disruption with genuine political progress.

"Tech leaders are selling an old fantasy in new packaging, promising a future where AI makes government more efficient, more responsive, and perhaps even entirely unnecessary."

A Failure of Imagination

During a recent appearance on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Lepore discussed these themes with host Anthony Ha. She posits that today’s AI visionaries—who frequently speculate about an "AI president"—are essentially misreading the very science fiction they claim to admire.

Lepore highlights several critical areas of concern regarding this shift:

• Historical Continuity: She draws a direct line from the iconic 1984 Macintosh advertisement to modern concepts like Anthropic’s AI constitution.
• Literary Blueprints: Lepore notes that E.M. Forster’s 1909 story, The Machine Stops, serves as a chilling blueprint for the "artificial state," observing that it now reads less like fiction and more like the "diary of a very unhappy YouTuber."
• Sustainability: Ultimately, Lepore questions the viability of these corporate-led governance models, arguing that they are fundamentally unsustainable and require urgent reining in.

Listen and Engage

The full conversation, which dives deeper into why Lepore believes these leaders are poor students of speculative fiction, is available on the Equity podcast. You can find the episode on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, or your preferred podcast platform.

For further updates on the intersection of technology and policy, follow the Equity team on X and Threads at @EquityPod. The podcast is hosted by Anthony Ha and produced by Theresa Loconsolo, both of whom bring extensive backgrounds in journalism and media to the production.