Martin Berg

Welcome to a lecture with Martin Berg

Before AI became the big topic of conversation, it was automation that would change Swedish welfare. The promises sound familiar: freed up time, more efficient operations, more space for the human. But what really happened when they encountered a reality of old systems, locked-in agreements and organizational inertia? And what can we learn from it now, when the next wave of promises washes in? Martin Berg, professor of media technology at Malmö University, presents results from the book Stalled: How Automated Welfare Futures Are Organised -- and Get Stuck, which will be completed in 2026 for Bristol University Press. The book is based on the Swedish Research Council-funded research project "Working with algorithmic colleagues" and is based on ethnographic interviews with key people in about ten Swedish municipalities. Concepts such as "click-level bureaucracy" and "silver tape solutions" make visible the often silent work that goes on behind the promises of digitalization: how automation projects get stuck between vision and everyday life, and how temporary solutions keep the future alive without truly fulfilling it.

The lecture will be held in Swedish.

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About AI in focus

AI in focus is a seminar series that aims to provide employees with knowledge and inspiration on how AI can be applied in their work, regardless of whether they are teachers, researchers, work in administration, or the libraries. The series also highlights the AI research conducted at the University, as well as offering a recurring meeting place where people with an interest in AI can make contacts and exchange ideas and experiences.

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