In a recent Lawfare conversation, Yale political scientist Hélène Landemore makes the case that decisions about AI's purpose, limits, and governance should involve the public at large, not just the usual elites. Drawing on her Noema essay, she argues that elected officials, technical experts, and the companies building AI systems each have blind spots that broader public deliberation can correct.
Landemore's proposed alternative is grounded in deliberative democracy, particularly the use of sortition—random selection—and citizens' assemblies. These mechanisms, she suggests, could be scaled up to support global public consultation on AI, giving ordinary people a structured voice in shaping the technology's trajectory.
The conversation does not shy away from hard questions. Landemore and host Kevin Frazier grapple with how to ensure genuine representation, what role expertise should play in deliberative bodies, and whether the platforms hosting such consultations might themselves wield undue influence. The episode offers a thought-provoking look at a governance model that remains largely untested in the AI domain.