POL 38 — Reimagining Democracy: AI and the Future of Civic Engagement
Quarter: Summer
Instructor(s): Alice Siu
Date(s): Jul 17—Aug 21
Class Recording Available: Yes
Class Meeting Day: Thursdays
Grade Restriction: NGR only; no credit/letter grade
Class Meeting Time: 5:30—7:00 pm (PT)
Tuition: $305
Refund Deadline: Jul 19
Unit(s): 0
Status: Open
Quarter: Summer
Day: Thursdays
Duration: 6 weeks
Time: 5:30—7:00 pm (PT)
Date(s): Jul 17—Aug 21
Unit(s): 0
Tuition: $305
Refund Deadline: Jul 19
Instructor(s): Alice Siu
Grade Restriction: NGR only; no credit/letter grade
Recording Available: Yes
Status: Open
Artificial intelligence is reshaping how societies engage, deliberate, and make decisions. But what role should AI play in democracy, and how do we balance its potential with its risks? This course explores the intersection of AI and deliberative democracy—a model of governance emphasizing informed, inclusive, and respectful discourse. It is based on a popular class offered to Stanford undergraduates and led by a senior Stanford research scholar. We will investigate how platforms like Meta, OpenAI, and Anthropic use AI to enhance civic engagement and democratic decision-making and explore key questions: How can AI support democratic processes? What challenges arise in integrating AI into governance? How can democratic principles guide the regulation of AI technologies? Students will engage in discussions, analyze real-world examples, and develop strategies for using AI to foster more participatory and equitable governance.
Stanford Continuing Studies has lowered the tuition for this course to increase access to education on emerging technologies and their impact on democratic systems.
ALICE SIU
Associate Director of the Deliberative Democracy Lab and Senior Research Scholar at the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford
Alice Siu received a PhD in communication from Stanford, with a focus in political communication, deliberative democracy, and public opinion. She also received a BA in economics and in public policy and an MA in political science from Stanford. Siu has advised policymakers and political and industry leaders around the world at various levels of government. Her research interests in deliberative democracy include the quality of deliberation, scaling deliberation to K–16, and scaling deliberation through technology for deliberative societies.
Textbooks for this course:
There are no required textbooks; however, some fee-based online readings may be assigned.