Conclusion: Beyond the End of History

This book addressed a great variety of phenomena, ranging from algorithmic ontologies and their effects on user behavior to national and regional attempts to construct digital sovereignty in the EU, China, Russia, India, and the US. It also considered minoritarian positions on digital sovereignty, such as those of indigenous tribes in the US, Francophones in Canada, and Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Furthermore, it discussed the proliferation of digital authoritarian practices in the post-Westphalian order and the rise of a postliberal form of private government exerted by digital platforms. The interpretation of these phenomena was based on an underlying leitmotif: the Hegelian concept of recognition. In the context of this leitmotif, authors were cited who are strongly influenced by Hegelian ideas: Marx, Schmitt, Kojève, Girard, Taylor, Sandel, Anderson, Fukuyama, Jasanoff, Couldry, and Mejias. This speculative conclusion relates the Hegelian ‘end of history’ to digital technologies and the postliberal era.