Amid the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and the debate on how it should be regulated, research by the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) examines a key question: who sets the rules and through what infrastructure.
The article, published in open access by the international journal AI & Society (Nature group), is authored by UOC doctoral researcher Andreu Belsunces Gonçalves , from the CNSC research group, and Laura Forlano , from Northeastern University in Boston (United States). The study analyses how certain technological initiatives not only provide services but also promote governance models based on private digital identity and biometric data systems.
As a case study, the research focuses on World (formerly Worldcoin) , a project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman that proposes verifying that a user is human by scanning the iris , in exchange for a digital identity certificate. The study analyses how such initiatives connect narratives about future risks, such as bots, fraud and impersonation, with promises of security and inclusion , and how this can make it easier for speculative scenarios to evolve into real infrastructure.
As Andreu Belsunces Gonçalves explained, "The debate on AI is not only technological, it is also a debate about the futures these technologies create, and who will govern them. Projects like World do not simply offer a tool, they propose a model of governance that can erode the legitimacy of democratic institutions while presenting a private alternative."
The article introduces the concept of "sociotechnical fictions" to describe these narratives of the future that, when presented as inevitable, can influence decisions about technological design and roll-out, with political consequences.
According to the CNSC researcher, who is affiliated with the UOC-TRÀNSIC research centre, "When future scenarios are framed as unavoidable, technical decisions with policy implications can be legitimized." He added, "What we analyse is how these narratives contribute to a project that emerged in the 1980s – one that rejects democracy, embraces fundamental individualism and argues that engineering and the free market can replace politics in addressing social problems. Ironically, many of these actors have developed their technologies with millions in public funding."
According to the research, these narratives gain traction when they:
The study does not assess the project's empirical impact on users, rather it offers tools to understand how certain imaginaries of the future may end up shaping digital infrastructure and the public debate on identity, biometrics and AI governance.
This study is part of the UOC's Digital transition and sustainability and Ethical and human-centred technology research missions, and supports the UN's Sustainable Development Goals , especially SDG 16, Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions .
Reference article
Belsunces Gonçalves, A., Forlano, L. World(coin) in the AI future: how sociotechnical fictions are instrumental to the cyberlibertarian transition. AI & Soc (2026). DOI: 10.1007/s00146-026-02913-1 .
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Case study
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World(coin) in the AI future: how sociotechnical fictions are instrumental to the cyberlibertarian transition
18-Feb-2026