An interesting book that dives into the problems with platforms today, providing good arguments for the way that platforms and techno-oligarchs have been mining and using our data for years for their own benefits. 4.5/5

Against Platforms is an interesting interrogation about the promises and our beliefs in technology. People tend to believe that technology is inherently positive and progressive and Mike Pepi does a fantastic job of debunking that as well as other ideologies concerning technologies. I found this to be a great read and would be best paired with Filterworld by Kyle Chayka.

I wasn't that into this book. I understand that the author isn't trying to turn everyone into a Luddite, but instead caution us about the overuse and reliance on technological advancements. However, I felt that this book was something that comes out with every new advancement era. In the Renaissance Era, there was probably someone saying, "hey, hold on, let's calm down for a moment and think more deeply about how these innovations will effect society." Also, the rise of ethical AI is allowing a larger discussion around the use of AI, such as ChatGPT, so that is one check on advancement. Plus, I believe that as a society, speaking as an American, that we jump on the bandwagon and don't immediately ask if the brakes are operational until we feel the wagon get out of control. This book is useful, no doubt about it, but it is digging into a deep hole that could easily lead someone to be a Luddite or go down the conspiracy theory route, so take the time to read and think, instead of read and overthink.

Mike Pepi, a self-proclaimed humanist, is a masterful writer; and Against Platforms: Surviving Digital Utopia is his honest, raw, modern, and objective new work about our delusional, pie-in-the-sky perspectives and ideologies concerning the technologies we are using during our current Information Age. Our contemporary belief is: technology, in general, will “create a more egalitarian, democratic society,” (3) or what Pepi believes is a mythical techno-utopianism that will synthesize into a techno-determinism and free-market capitalism, thus creating “what many refer to as platform capitalism” (3). With that said, Pepi is quite clear early on about not being against Silicon Valley, technological innovation, or platform production. Instead, what he is against is the untruthful messaging coming from out-of-touch multibillionaires and high-tech moguls, who wrongly and falsely suggest a utopia is inevitable if platforms continue to be generated. Against Platforms, therefore, is a written revelation meant to debunk these untruths, so we do not become hypnotized by the shiny objects that are secretly meant to control us.

The full review is coming out in Rain Taxi in the coming weeks. Keep watch!