Artificial Intelligence in the Grip of Capital: A Marxist Reading of -Capitalist Artificial Intelligence: Leftist Challenges and Possible Alternatives-

Artificial Intelligence in the Grip of Capital: A Marxist Reading of "Capitalist Artificial Intelligence: Leftist Challenges and Possible Alternatives"

Introduction
I received a digital copy of the above-mentioned book by Rezgar Akrawi.
From the title alone, the book clearly declares its class position. Artificial intelligence is not presented as a random invention but as part of the evolution of capitalist tools of domination. The analysis does not hide its bias. On the contrary, it builds its perspective on the conflict between capital and labor within the digital realm. This is a political text as much as it is an analytical one.
In a time when technological development is accelerating at an astonishing pace, and algorithms of control and domination are becoming increasingly entrenched, the left in most of its tendencies stands hesitant, unable to formulate a coherent vision in response to the digital surge and the class and exploitative dimensions it carries. This is precisely where the importance of "Capitalist Artificial Intelligence: Leftist Challenges and Possible Alternatives" emerges. Akrawi embarks on a bold intellectual endeavor, blending Marxism with technological critique and shaping a liberatory project that challenges digital capitalism.
The book does not stop at describing new mechanisms of exploitation. It goes further to interrogate the very essence of the relationship between technology and power, between artificial intelligence and capital, between possible futures and imposed ones. In doing so, the book becomes an analytical and theoretical outcry against the collusion of tech giants with political authority, and against digital alienation and epistemic dispossession.

First: Artificial Intelligence as a Tool of Class Domination
The author begins with a radical analysis of artificial intelligence. He does not view it as a neutral technological advancement´-or-an intellectual achievement but as a tool that deepens capitalist relations of production and reproduces systems of control in increasingly concealed and dangerous ways. Algorithms are not written in a vacuum. They do not operate impartially. They feed on the data of users of all genders and are molded to serve the accumulation of profit, the commodification of everyday life, and the normalization of repression and surveillance.
From this standpoint, artificial intelligence is not an innocent product. It is an extension of the capitalist machine, which works to transform knowledge and data into commodities, and society into a permanent marketplace. The so-called "Fourth Industrial Revolution" is merely a new phase of capitalism. It reshapes labor and systems of control under the mask of technology and sidelines the working class and digitally marginalized groups in favor of a techno-bourgeois elite.

Second: Digital Incarceration and Symbolic Assassination
The book presents creative theoretical concepts that enrich the field of critical thought, such as “digital incarceration” and “symbolic assassination.” These concepts describe the invisible servitude imposed by corporate giants like Google, Amazon, and Facebook. Power no longer needs police´-or-prisons. Surveillance has become internalized. Domination has become voluntary. Each user becomes a number in a database. Every preference´-or-click is turned into a tool to enhance systems of control.
Akrawi shows clearly that so-called “algorithmic neutrality” is a myth. Every algorithm contains within it a worldview, a logic of power, and a mechanism for distributing opportunities and resources. Perhaps the most dangerous aspect of capitalist artificial intelligence is its ability to reshape collective consciousness according to market logic. It makes detachment and isolation from reality a condition for survival.

Third: The Necessity of Building a Electronic Left
One of the book’s major contributions is its development of the concept of the “Electronic Left.” This is not a left that merely criticizes technology on moral grounds´-or-rejects it reflexively. It is a left that seeks to build real technological alternatives rooted in the values of justice, equality, and collective knowledge. The author calls for the creation of socialist digital infrastructures, global leftist alliances, and open-source artificial intelligence frameworks managed by liberatory collectives that operate outside the logic of profit.
This Electronic Left does not rely on the nation-state´-or-existing institutions. It calls for moving beyond them through new forms of internationalist organization. In this vision, technology is produced as part of a broader emancipatory project. Akrawi revives the role of the organic intellectual and calls on the technical proletariat to engage in the struggle to reclaim control over digital means of production.

Fourth: A Critical Language and Agitative Approach
What makes this work stand out is that it avoids academic elitism and does not submit to the discourse of technological elites. It uses a clear leftist language and combines necessary simplification with theoretical radicalism. The author stands with marginalized classes and places at the center of his thesis the need to resist the commodification of knowledge and the monopolization of life by algorithmic giants. It is also worth noting that the book is digital and freely accessible.
Although the subject is highly complex, the author ensures that the ideas are accessible to a wide audience. He avoids complicated technical jargon and opts for terms close to the reader’s experience. This allows the text to educate without alienating.


A Methodological Critique of the Book
Despite the book’s theoretical value and its political urgency, its approach is not without-limit-ations. These observations are presented here not as a rejection but as part of a Marxist effort to develop and deepen the work.
1. Lack of Engagement with Other Leftist Tendencies
The book takes a clear Marxist stance but does not open a genuine dialogue with other leftist currents such as Trotskyism, libertarian socialism,´-or-post-structuralist left theory. Including such engagements would have enriched the text and strengthened the diversity of perspectives within the broader resistance camp, particularly on complex issues like technology, power, and ownership.

2. Technical Idealism in Proposing Alternatives
While the author calls for the construction of collectively managed open-source AI, he provides little detail on how such a project could be built within the context of a harsh global capitalist system. How can the digitally marginalized, who are the majority, create viable technological alternatives when they face a lack of infrastructure and a monopoly of capital and power? The book does not provide a material analysis of the actual organizational capacity required for this.
Moreover, the notion of a “digital proletariat” requires greater clarity. Who are they? What are their characteristics? How do they differ from the industrial proletariat? The text does not fully explore these questions.
The call for democratic and open AI remains mostly theoretical. Where should it begin? What are the obstacles? Who would manage such initiatives? The text does not provide clear answers.

3. Lack of Rigorous Theoretical Documentation
Although the book is rich in ideas, it lacks rigorous academic references in some sections, especially regarding the historical development of artificial intelligence´-or-engagement with leftist theorists who have addressed technology, such as Antonio Negri, David Harvey,´-or-Yuk Hui. Including such references would have added analytical depth and strengthened the book’s dialectical foundation.

4. Repetition at the Expense of Analytical Progression
The writing style, which seeks to make the text accessible for partial digital reading, sometimes leads to the repetition of ideas and paragraphs without introducing new theoretical developments. This occasionally hampers the dialectical flow of the argument and makes the discourse feel circular rather than cumulative.


Conclusion
Despite its valid reservations, "Capitalist Artificial Intelligence: Leftist Challenges and Possible Alternatives" remains one of the most significant contemporary leftist attempts to approach technology from a Marxist perspective. It is not merely a book about artificial intelligence. It is a book about human beings, labor, the future, and resistance. It is an open invitation to all Marxists, to all organic intellectuals, to all who refuse to be reduced to a number´-or-a file, to reclaim their digital means of production and to rebuild the world not according to corporate logic but in line with our collective dreams.

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