28 Jul Prof Calzada publishes a chapter From Data-opolies to Decentralization? in Springer Nature volume

Prof. Dr. Igor Calzada has contributed a chapter to the newly released Springer Nature volume Research and Innovation Forum 2024, edited by Anna Visvizi, Vincenzo Corvello, and Orlando Troisi. The chapter, titled “From Data-opolies to Decentralization? The AI Disruption Amid the Web3 Promiseland at Stake in Datafied Democracies,” critically examines the tension between concentrated platform power and the decentralization narratives emerging around Web3 technologies.

The chapter explores how Artificial Intelligence (AI), platform capitalism, and data governance are transforming public institutions and democratic infrastructures. It reflects on whether the promises of decentralization in the Web3 ecosystem offer a genuine alternative to monopolistic “data-opolies,” or instead reproduce new forms of technopolitical elitism. This work builds on Prof. Calzada’s broader research agenda on digital sovereignty, Urban AI, and innovation systems under conditions of systemic transformation.The chapter is available via Springer at the following DOI:
🔗 https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-78623-5_26An open-access version of the preprint is also available via SSRN:
📄 https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4991253This publication forms part of Prof. Calzada’s ongoing work at the intersection of digital transformation, policy innovation, and territorial governance. It also contributes to current debates on the future of data governance and democratic legitimacy in the age of AI.