AI Executives Emerge as a New Global Power Elite, Echoing C. Wright Mills' Warning
By
Austin Sarat
Summary
The article draws a parallel between C. Wright Mills' 1956 concept of the "power elite" and today's AI industry leaders. It argues that the heads of major AI companies (like Sam Altman, Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella) have become a new global power elite, wielding enormous influence over governments, economies, and societies. The piece examines how these tech executives participated in the G7 meetings, shaping policy discussions around AI regulation, and questions the concentration of power in unelected, unaccountable corporate leaders whose decisions affect billions worldwide.
Source
bskyAI Executives Emerge as a New Global Power Elite, Echoing C. Wright Mills' Warningthefulcrum.usKey quotes
· 3 pulledWhat Mills labeled 'the power elite' occupied leading roles in corporations, the military, and political institutions.
Mills' book was designed to explore the shadowy world in which the power elite operated and to expose the enormous behind-the-scenes influence of a group whose decisions had great consequences for 'the underlying populations of the world.'
At the time it appeared, commentators credited Mills with 'developing a theory of w
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