How does global data capitalism work—and who bears the costs? In this panel discussion—a collaboration with the Festival für Politik im Freien Theater (Festival for Politics in Independent Theater)—Francesca Schmidt (bpb) talks with journalist and expert Ingo Dachwitz (netzpolitik.org) about the diagnosis of digital colonialism and its implications for today’s working world. Afterwards, we will show the film Unknown Label by Nicolas Gourault. It depicts the everyday life of online micro-workers from the Global South who train AI systems.
4 p.m. Lecture and discussion with Ingo Dachwitz
5:30 p.m. Screening Unknown Label and Q&A with Nicolas Gourault
The event focuses on the often invisible but fundamental role of data work: people who moderate content, prepare training data for AI, or control algorithms—often under precarious conditions and in the Global South. Who benefits from this form of digital exploitation? What power relations are reproduced in the architecture of digital platforms? The event will also address the ecological impact of Western societies’ demand for digital infrastructure: Under what conditions are raw materials and resources for digital technologies extracted? How does the export of important raw materials affect the countries of origin? And how can we contribute to better conditions?
The event is being held in cooperation with the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (bpb) and the 12th Festival für Politik im Freien Theater as part of the exhibition Robotron. Code and Utopia (October 25, 2025–February 22, 2026).