Il giudizio di Talos. Valutazione, algoritmi, macchine.

Individuals are more and more subjected to evaluation mechanisms managed by algorithmic systems, and a growing universe of human experiences undergo decision-making processes conducted by evaluating assemblages of data and machines. Algorithmic evaluation represents a powerful social mechanism of resource distribution, and one of the most important transformative drivers of contemporary governance systems. The essay provides a definition of algorithmic evaluation, and a brief literature review on its fields of application. Then, the main risks connected to its qualitative and quantitative expansion are investigated through the study of a crucial case with a huge political and social impact: predictive policing. Finally, the paper summarizes the challenges posed by autonomous evaluation systems to contemporary societies, highlighting the gap between, on the one hand, the speed of development and adoption of these new technologies and, on the other hand, the time needed to assess their functioning and effects from a democratic political perspective.