On Tuesday 12 May 2026, our course on the Consequences of Artificial Intelligence (AI) came to an end with an examination of the consequences for Government and Democracy. This was particularly pertinent given the community election results the previous week,

We saw how Governments around the world are using Artificial Intelligence, and whether or not the results are proving beneficial to the communities. Examples came from Japan, France, China and Germany, as well as the more familiar UK and USA.

We then moved on to the consequences for Democracy, with a significant contribution from Prof. Lawrence Lessig in a TED Talk. We examined what is being experienced between the people, the democratic state, the corporations in those states and the Artificial Intelligence engines being used.

To finish on a lighter note, we saw examples and explanations of the Deep Fake technology and how it can be detected. In this field, it is hard to know it all, especially as the rate of change is so fast. But the conclusion of the course was reached on a positive note so that we can maximise the gains whilst guarding against the potential threats.