We know that Silicon Valley big tech companies are spying on us. Data is the new oil as they say. Do we care though? Probably not, but a leaked video from Google could set your alarm bells ringing or at least have the hairs on the back of your neck standing on end.
The Selfish Ledger asks whether data is like the DNA of our behavior. Does the data determine our behavior? It posits the question whether our data belongs to us. If our data was available to future generations, think of the good it can do.
The problem with hypotheses like this one is they inevitably end up attacking free will. The algorithms that use our data begin making decisions for us rather than just advising us on the best course of action; they become sovereign.
The Selfish Ledger points all of this out in a startlingly blunt fashion. The app at the heart of your existence, known as your ledger, influences your behavior so that it can collect the data it needs to make better decisions. It can even create new products to help it do so and then purchase them on your behalf.
Google says that the Selfish Ledger is no more than an old design concept that is supposed to be disturbing. It claims that it isn’t related to any current or future Google products. Google’s very lifeblood, however, is our data and with being evil now on the table at Google HQ who is to say that Google isn’t lying to us? Check out the video and let us know what you think.
