AI for the literary minded

A few centuries ago, an Englishman called Thomas Hobbes wrote in his famous book that the state was “but an artificial man”, with laws its artificial reason and civil servants its nerves. What happens when artificial intelligence systems are used to write laws and replace civil servants? Does the state become an “artificial artificial man”? And what about all the other genders?

I write Levaithan to answer these questions, among others. I document how AI changes the daily life of state institutions, from the judiciary to education or public procurements, and how this impacts our lives.

Two decades of experience in tech journalism and computer science let me go deep under the hood of AI-as-a-technology. A PhD in social sciences, on the other hand, gives me the intellectual foundation to understand AI-as-an-ideology. The combination of both makes me uniquely placed to go beyond the headlines, be they overly enthusiastic or negative about the transformation we are living through.

The keys to understanding – in 5 minutes

Each week, the newsletter offers a 5-minute round-up including:

• an article that goes in-depth on a topic,
• a European and international press review,
• a summary of a recent piece of academic research.

Without any tracking.

The author

Nicolas Kayser-Bril has been covering AI for the past seven years. He was Head of Journalism at AlgorithmWatch from 2019 until 2026. His articles have been published in Le Monde, Der Spiegel and The Guardian, among others. He was awarded the prestigious European Press Prize in 2015. He received his PhD from the University of Regensburg in 2025 and lives in Berlin.