# HISTSCI 1851: Digital Democracy Semester: Spring | Year offered: 2026 | Link: [Course Website](https://canvas.harvard.edu/courses/160322) How is democracy evolving, or continuing to function, in an age of Artificial Intelligence (AI)? This course explores how cutting-edge and mundane technologies have changed the basic building blocks of collective governance, from voting systems and public service delivery to networked activism and digital communities. We’ll dive into the opportunities and risks of emerging tools and ask if technology has remade core concepts like freedom, fairness, and citizenship. Intended for students interested in the intersection of history, technology, and public policy, with special attention paid to debates in the United States over the past fifty years including over privacy, innovation, encryption, online sexuality, and the algorithmic harms. Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10:30-11:45 AM with Professor Marc Aidinoff --- [### Marc Aidinoff ](/people/marc-aidinoff) Assistant Professor of the History of Science Areas of Research: History of Computing, Automation, and AI; Social Policy; Technology and Society; Science and Technology Studies; Historical Epistemology Marc Aidinoff is a historian of science, technology, and the state, as well as a public policymaker... ![Marc Aidinoff](/sites/g/files/omnuum9516/files/styles/hwp_4_5__690x865/public/2025-08/Marc_Aidinoff.jpg?itok=ugKjhmH5)