CCS Colloquium: On genericity and computation – Konstantin Mitrokhov

What is computation after cybernetics and computerisation? To speak of computation in the twenty-first century is to speak of so-called “artificial intelligence” systems which have permeated societies. Computation, originally understood on formal terms elaborated by Alan Turing, has long expanded beyond the military and scientific domains, making its way into culture and even politics. One thing is clear though: computation now concerns much more than calculation, simulation, prediction, or computers themselves.

In the early AI field, computation provided means to implement general methods of deduction. Critical theorists saw these methods as a form of instrumental reason that enables technocratic control. On the other hand, some physicists and cognitive scientists assumed that the universe and our minds are fundamentally computational. However, as accounts of computation from philosophy and studies of technology and science suggest, the scope of computation far exceeds its instrumental use while not quite reaching the status of metaphysics. With this in mind, computation can be said to be conceptually underdetermined or generic (Schmid; Laruelle).

Drawing on the field of STS, Gilbert Simondon, and Bernard Stiegler, I suggest that computation should be viewed as a sociotechnical process. This perspectival shift from a formal to process ontology of computation enables me to explore its historicity, technicity, and politics. Moreover, this position allows for a new hypothesis: the historical trajectory of computation is the shift from generality to genericity. This trajectory can be traced in the empirical material from the fields of AI, ML, and cognitive sciences, augmented by accounts of computation from philosophy, critical sociology, as well as media theory.

Konstantin Mitrokhov is a scholar working at the intersection of critical AI studies, philosophy of technology, media studies, and the expanded STS field. Having studied mathematics, informatics, artistic practices, and contemporary critical theory, Konstantin is currently completing his PhD at the School of Culture and Society at Leuphana University Lüneburg. His dissertation explores computation, machine learning technics, and the forms of thought they enable. As a doctoral fellow, he is affiliated with the ‘Disruptive Condition’ and ‘Embracing Transformation’ research initiatives.

Contact: anne.graefe@leuphana.de | heiko.stubenrauch@leuphana.de
Language: English