As governments procure, develop, implement, and mandate the use of digital and computational systems, the state becomes ever more “datafied” — and the boundaries between public and private power and accountability are increasingly blurred. Our emerging research agenda, The Datafied State, explores the growing impact of algorithms, automation, and surveillance across civic life, and the benefits and risks they pose to the public.

Data & Society is hosting a series of conversations with researchers, technology designers, lawyers, activists, policy experts, and public administrators to articulate this agenda across three lines of inquiry. We seek to build a shared understanding — and over time, an empirical base — that can guide the governance and use of these technologies toward equity and the public interest.