ABSTRACT
Technological solutions to social problems can create problems of their own. One such problem is the negative impact of technology on the distribution and exercise of power in society. The present chapter aims to show how recent advances in AI technology can affect the structure of power relations and lead to unequal distribution of power in society, thereby impeding the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This chapter consists of three parts. The first part disentangles different notions of power extant in literature and considers how these notions of power apply to technology. The second part discusses how bias embedded in AI technology can lead to inequality of power through exclusion or marginalization of people. The final part dwells on the importance of equality as a political ideal for sustainable development in the context of the distribution of power in society.
