AI for Democracy Won’t Build Itself—And Large Corporations Won’t Build It For Us
Accenture has 69,000 people working on AI and $1.2 billion in new AI bookings. McKinsey, BCG, IBM—every major consulting firm is making billions advising governments, corporations, and nonprofits on how to “do something with AI.”
The problem? Most of these firms aren’t AI experts. They’re packaging up generic transformation strategies, selling them to organisations that don’t really understand AI, and locking in approaches that prioritise efficiency and profit over public value.
That’s how AI deployment is being shaped right now—by high-level strategy decks rather than sector expertise. And it’s why, if we want AI to actually serve civic engagement, democracy, and public-interest technology, we need to be in the room when these decisions are being made.
The AI Consulting Boom is Setting the Agenda
AI is already changing political tech. From automated voter outreach to disinformation monitoring, the next wave of civic engagement tools will be AI-driven. The problem is, the firms making the most money from AI right now aren’t AI labs, engineers, or mission-driven organisations—they’re the consulting firms advising on AI adoption at scale.
Accenture: $1.2 billion in new AI bookings, 69,000 AI and data employees.
McKinsey: Forecasts AI will soon make up 40% of its total revenue.
BCG: Already derives 20% of its business from AI.
IBM: More than $1 billion in AI-related sales in 2023 alone.
These firms are shaping how AI gets deployed across industries—not because they build AI, but because they control who invests in what, which tools get prioritised, and what problems AI is “meant” to solve.
That means AI for civic engagement, democratic participation, and political technology isn’t even on the map unless we put it there.
The Problem: AI for Democracy is an Afterthought
If AI strategy keeps being written by the same firms that shaped past waves of corporate digital transformation, we’ll get AI optimised for profit and efficiency, not democratic resilience.
AI will be deployed to optimise campaign spending, not improve civic participation.
AI-powered tools will help brands understand consumer sentiment, but not help activists understand public discourse.
Disinformation tracking will be sold as a product, rather than treated as critical democratic infrastructure.
This isn’t just a question of whether AI is “good” or “bad.” It’s about who gets to decide how it’s used, and what outcomes matter. Right now, that decision-making power sits with consulting firms that are incentivised to sell solutions that appeal to corporate clients and policymakers—not to civic movements or advocacy organisations.
If we want AI to strengthen democracy rather than just optimise corporate efficiency, we need to be shaping these discussions before strategies are set.
OPEN Digital’s AI Lab: Building What They Won’t
At OPEN Digital, we’re not waiting for Accenture or McKinsey to figure out AI for civic engagement. We’re already building it.
That’s why we launched The Progressive AI Lab, an R&D hub focused on:
Disinformation tracking & media sentiment analysis – AI-powered tools to monitor and counter false narratives in real-time.
Predictive analytics for voter engagement & campaign strategy – AI models that help progressive movements understand and activate their supporters.
Automated message personalisation for advocacy groups – AI that scales grassroots organising, making campaigns more targeted, effective, and responsive.
This is the kind of AI that doesn’t make the consulting firm playbook—because it’s not designed to maximise revenue or streamline corporate operations. It’s designed to strengthen democracy, fight disinformation, and increase participation in political life.
Where Do We Go From Here?
The AI boom isn’t slowing down. Governments, nonprofits, and advocacy groups are all under pressure to “adopt AI” in some form. If they keep relying on consulting firms to tell them how, we already know what they’ll get—AI designed for efficiency, profit, and corporate control.
That’s why we need to be pitching ourselves into this space. AI for democracy, for civic engagement, for movement-building—this isn’t on the agenda unless we put it there.
What this means for OPEN Digital:
We need to be in the AI strategy conversations early – before decisions get locked in.
We should be pitching our AI lab as the alternative to generic consulting frameworks.
We need to partner with institutions that are being advised on AI adoption, making sure civic tech isn’t left behind.
AI is going to shape how people engage with democracy in the coming years. Right now, the people making those decisions don’t understand political technology, civic engagement, or democratic infrastructure.
We do. Let’s make sure we’re the ones shaping AI for democracy—before someone else does it for us.—
