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- Herausgeber: L'Oliveto Publisher
- Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
- Sprache: Englisch
“The Data Revolution” is an essay that takes a deep dive into how data has become the new force shaping the economy, politics, and contemporary society. The book shows how, in recent years, information has gone from being a simple technical resource to a real lever of global power, capable of influencing public decisions, corporate strategies, and even individual behavior.
The work traces the recent historical context—from the 2020 pandemic to the advent of generative artificial intelligence in 2025—highlighting how these events have accelerated digitization, surveillance, and dependence on predictive analytics systems.
Through thematic chapters, the author examines:
• The structural risks of the data revolution
How the loss of privacy, mass surveillance, and information inequality are redefining the concept of freedom in the digital society.
• Algorithmic manipulation and disinformation
Algorithms do not just inform: they select, orient, and amplify content designed to capture attention, transforming reality into a sum of personalized information bubbles.
• Future scenarios
The book imagines a future where the automation of disinformation, deepfakes, creative artificial intelligence, and advanced surveillance systems redefine the very concept of truth and autonomy.
• Possible solutions
Global strategies for the ethical use of data are analyzed: international regulation, algorithmic transparency, digital education, information sovereignty, and the development of data protection technologies.
• A provocative and conscious conclusion
The book invites readers to question their role in this new ecosystem: passive spectator or critical citizen? The data revolution is not about machines, but about humanity itself.
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2026
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The data revolution
How economics and politics are changing the world
Fabrizio Ambrogi
Index
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1: CURRENT HISTORICAL CONTEXT
CHAPTER 2: THE MAIN CHALLENGES
CHAPTER 3: OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS
CHAPTER 5: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
landmarks
Title page
Cover
Index
Book start
INTRODUCTION
Did you know that more than 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are generated every day worldwide? Every move we make online, every purchase, every Internet search leaves a digital trail that, when analysed correctly, can predict behaviour, shape political decisions and redefine entire markets.
Just a few years ago, the idea that an algorithm could influence a presidential election, decide which products you would see first, or predict a company's failure seemed like science fiction. Today, it is part of our everyday reality. The data revolution is here, and it is transforming the economy and politics in ways we are only beginning to understand.
In recent decades, the world has undergone a profound change in the way information is generated, stored and used. What was once a limited and difficult-to-collect resource is now available on an unimaginable scale: every email sent, every Internet search, every financial transaction, every interaction on social networks generates data that, when properly analysed, can become valuable knowledge. This ability to transform information into strategic decisions is at the heart of what we now call the data revolution, a phenomenon that is reshaping the global economy and politics.
In the economic sphere, data has become a resource comparable to capital or labour. Companies in all sectors use advanced algorithms, artificial intelligence and predictive analytics to optimise processes, anticipate demand, personalise the customer experience and make strategic decisions faster and more accurately than ever before in history. Power no longer lies solely in the ability to produce goods or services, but in the ability to collect, process and apply information effectively. This shift has given rise to new business models based on digital platforms, where data collection and analysis become the main source of value and competitive advantage. Companies that were previously unknown, thanks to the information they manage, can supplant traditional giants in a matter of years, or even months, proving that in the contemporary economy, whoever controls the data controls the market.
But the influence of data is not limited to the economy. Politics is also immersed in this transformation. Governments and political organisations are increasingly turning to the analysis of large volumes of information to design public policies, guide election campaigns and better understand their citizens. Tools that enable the segmentation of audiences, analysis of behaviour and anticipation of reactions have changed the way leaders interact with the population. This can lead to significant benefits, such as more efficient policies and rapid responses to social problems, but it also poses complex challenges related to privacy, ethics and the concentration of power. The manipulation of information, the spread of fake news and the exploitation of vulnerabilities in human behaviour become real risks when information becomes a political weapon.
The book also addresses how the data revolution poses fundamental ethical dilemmas. As companies and governments accumulate vast amounts of information about individuals and groups, the question arises as to who should have access to such data and for what purpose. Transparency, accountability, and the protection of individual rights become central issues in the discussion of information governance. Similarly, inequality in access to technology and the ability to exploit data can deepen economic and social divides, creating a world in which some actors disproportionately concentrate power while others are left behind.
Understanding the data revolution means recognising that we are facing a structural change that is not only redefining industries and governments, but also the way we live and relate to each other. Every decision that is made today, every business strategy or policy, is influenced by the information that is held and how it is interpreted. Data-driven knowledge offers the possibility of making smarter, more informed decisions, but it also requires responsibility, critical thinking and awareness of the risks involved. This is why this book not only analyses the economic and political impacts, but also invites us to reflect on ethics, regulation and how we can use information to build more equitable and sustainable societies.
In short, the data revolution is not an isolated phenomenon or a simple technological advance: it is a profound change in the structure of power and decision-making. Understanding its dynamics, opportunities and risks is essential for any person, company or government that wants to remain relevant in a world where information has become the force that shapes the present and the future. This book seeks to offer a comprehensive look at this phenomenon, combining analysis, examples and reflections that allow the reader not only to understand how data is transforming the economy and politics, but also how to actively participate in an environment increasingly defined by information.
But what we have seen so far is only the tip of the iceberg. Behind every algorithm that predicts our purchasing decisions, behind every analysis that guides public policy, there is a complex world of strategies, risks and secrets that few people fully understand. Who really controls the data that defines our economy and our democracies? What invisible decisions are made based on information about us that we do not even know exists?
In this book, we will explore these questions and many more. We will discover how data can empower or manipulate, how companies and governments use it to gain advantages, and how citizens can learn to navigate this new world where information is power. Each chapter reveals surprising aspects of the data revolution, demonstrating that its influence goes far beyond what we imagined and that the decisions we make today will determine what the world will look like tomorrow.
The question remains: are you ready to discover the truth behind the information that surrounds us and understand how data is shaping the future of the economy and politics? If your curiosity has been piqued, then this journey is just beginning.
CHAPTER 1: CURRENT HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Over the past five years, the world has experienced an unprecedented acceleration in the way data shapes the economy, politics and everyday life. From the pandemic of 2020 to the consolidation of artificial intelligence in 2025, information has become the axis around which global decision-making revolves. What began as a tool for health management and digital optimisation has evolved into a complex system of power, control and structural transformation. Data has gone from being simple numerical records to becoming the raw material of the modern economy and the new language of contemporary politics. Each year has brought advances, tensions and ethical dilemmas that have redefined the relationship between governments, businesses and citizens, demonstrating that the data revolution is not only changing the way we live, but also who has control over the future.
2020 - The COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of data as a tool for control and management
The global health crisis has dramatically accelerated digitisation and the use of data on a large scale. Governments and businesses have resorted to massive information analysis to monitor infections, plan healthcare resources and design lockdown strategies. Tracking applications, predictive models and big health data have marked a before and after: data has been consolidated as an essential tool for public management.
In the economic sphere, millions of companies have migrated to digital platforms, generating an unprecedented volume of information on consumption, mobility and working habits. It was the turning point that showed the world that whoever dominates data dominates the crisis.
The year 2020 marked a turning point in recent history. What began as a global health crisis turned into a phenomenon that radically changed the economic, political and social structures of the planet. The COVID-19 pandemic not only tested healthcare systems and national economies, but also accelerated a silent transformation that was already underway: the data revolution. Amidst the chaos and uncertainty, governments, businesses and citizens discovered that information — real-time, accurate and reliable — was the most valuable resource for survival, adaptation and decision-making.
From the first outbreaks, the need to collect and analyse data became urgent. Countries that managed to implement digital tracking systems, epidemiological models and predictive infection control were able to respond more effectively. Data on mobility, population density, social behaviour, and resource consumption became vital indicators for making decisions in a matter of hours. In this context, health management ceased to be exclusively medical and became an exercise in data intelligence. Every infection curve, every heat map, every projection graph was an example of how information could save lives or, in its absence, put them at risk.
Big tech played a decisive role. Platforms such as Google, Apple and Microsoft offered support for mass tracking and analysis systems, while logistics and e-commerce companies, such as Amazon, developed algorithms capable of anticipating demand for essential goods, reorganising global supply chains. Thus, data became not only a tool for health control, but also the new engine of the economy. With the spread of lockdowns, daily life migrated to the digital space: work, education, consumption and even leisure began to depend on online platforms.
This forced digitalisation has led to an explosion in the amount of data generated by humanity. Every virtual meeting, every online purchase, every Internet search and every interaction on social networks fuelled a constant flow of information that revealed patterns of how society was reorganising itself in the face of the crisis. Suddenly, companies realised that this data had incalculable value: they could anticipate behaviour, identify new business opportunities and design more precise strategies than ever before. Consumers, on the other hand, became unwitting producers of information, and their digital footprints began to form part of the new global economic map.
In the political sphere, the pandemic has also transformed the relationship between citizens and the state. Many governments have used digital surveillance technologies to track cases, monitor movements or impose lockdowns. This has sparked an unprecedented debate about the boundaries between public health and individual privacy. To what extent was it legitimate to sacrifice privacy in the name of collective security? Some countries, such as South Korea and Singapore, have been praised for their success in using data to contain the virus; others, however, have been criticised for abusing surveillance and accumulating sensitive information without guarantees of transparency.
Political power began to be measured by the ability to manage information. Governments that mastered data analysis were able to communicate more effectively, plan evidence-based policies and react to changes with greater agility. However, a gap also emerged between countries with strong technological infrastructures and those without access to advanced tools. This digital inequality translated into a new form of power: control of data became a strategic resource, as important as oil or energy.
The global economy, meanwhile, has entered a new phase. The pandemic has not only destroyed millions of jobs, but has also fuelled the emergence of an interconnected, information-driven digital economy. Companies that had invested in data technology before the crisis were able to adapt quickly, while those that relied on traditional business models fell behind or disappeared. Platforms such as Zoom, Netflix, TikTok and Shopify became the protagonists of an era in which attention, consumption and communication were measured in gigabytes and connection time.
In short, 2020 was a global data laboratory. Companies learned that information-based knowledge can be both a tool for salvation and a weapon of control. The pandemic accelerated digitalisation, but it also highlighted the vulnerability of a hyperconnected world. On the one hand, data provided tools to coordinate global responses, innovate and sustain economies in the midst of collapse. On the other, it exposed profound risks: invasion of privacy, manipulation of information and dependence on technology companies that accumulate more power than any state has ever had before.
That year, without many people noticing, the seed of a new form of power was planted: the power of data. Since then, every economic decision, every public policy and every social relationship has been mediated by information that is generated, interpreted and monetised. 2020 was not just the year of a pandemic: it was the year humanity realised that information is at the heart of every strategy and that those who control it can define the course of the world.
2021 - Consolidation of remote working and the data-driven digital economy
After the initial impact of the pandemic, remote working and digital platforms became the new normal. Companies began to use productivity analytics, talent management algorithms and predictive market models.
Large technology companies (such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft) multiplied their revenues, driven by demand for cloud services and data intelligence tools.
