Futures of digital industry : : techno-managerial or techno-political utopia?

Abstract: This article examines the political function of state-sponsored proclamations of future technological developments with regard to the German example of ‘Industrie 4.0’. Building on a comparison of two classical texts of the literary genre of utopianism, Bacon’s Nova Atlantis and Morus’ Utopia, the article argues that the future visions of ‘Industrie 4.0’ can be understood as a techno-political utopia. As such, it is a discursive strategy consisting of three elements: social mobilization for national competitiveness (nationalism) towards a profitable industry with “men at the center” (solutionism) and without industrial conflicts (corporatism). These elements limit an open political discussion on desirable digital futures. The article concludes by demonstrating how critical social sciences could contribute to open the discourse from a mere techno-managerial towards a techno-political utopia

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Futures of digital industry ; volume:13 ; number:1 ; pages:98-108 ; Behemoth ; 13, Heft 1, 98-108

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Sozialwissenschaften, Soziologie, Anthropologie
• Keyword: Industrie 4.0

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Frey, Philipp ; Schaupp, Simon

Further information

• DOI: 10.6094/behemoth.2020.13.1.1039
• URN: urn:nbn:de:bsz:25-freidok-1659870
• Rights: Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 14.08.2025, 10:54 AM CEST