Technocapitalism or tech-capitalism refers to changes in capitalism associated with the emergence of new technology sectors, the power of

corporation A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and ...

s, and new forms of organization.

Corporate power and organization

Luis Suarez-Villa, in his 2009 book ''Technocapitalism: A Critical Perspective on Technological Innovation and Corporatism'' argues that it is a new version of capitalism that generates new forms of corporate organization designed to exploit intangibles such as

creativity Creativity is a phenomenon whereby something new and valuable is formed. The created item may be intangible (such as an idea, a scientific theory, a musical composition, or a joke) or a physical object (such as an invention, a printed lit ...

and new

knowledge Knowledge can be defined as awareness of facts or as practical skills, and may also refer to familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is often defined as true belief that is distin ...

. The new organizations, which he refers to as ''experimentalist organizations'' are deeply grounded in technological research, as opposed to manufacturing and services production. They are also heavily dependent on the corporate appropriation of research outcomes as

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

. This approach is further developed by Suarez-Villa in his 2012 book ''Globalization and Technocapitalism: The Political Economy of Corporate Power and Technological Domination'', in which he relates the emergence of technocapitalism to

globalization Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...

and to the growing power of technocapitalist

corporations A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

. Taking into account the new relations of power introduced by the corporations that control technocapitalism, he considers new forms of accumulation involving intangibles—such as

and new

—along with

and technological infrastructure. This perspective on

—and the effect of technocapitalism and its corporations—also takes into account the growing global importance of intangibles, the inequalities created between nations at the vanguard of technocapitalism and those that are not, the increasing importance of brain-drain flows between nations, and the rise of what he refers to as a techno-military-corporate complex that is rapidly replacing the old military-industrial complex of the second half of the 20th century. The concept behind technocapitalism is part of a line of thought that relates

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...

and

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, scien ...

to the evolution of

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...

. At the core of this idea of the evolution of capitalism is that science and technology are not divorced from society—or that they exist in a vacuum, or in a separate reality of their own—out of reach of social action and human decision. Science and technology are part of society, and they are subject to the priorities of capitalism as much as any other human endeavor, if not more so. Prominent scientists in the early 20th century, such as John Bernal, posited that science has a social function, and cannot be seen as something apart from society. Other scientists at that time, such as John Haldane, related science to social philosophy, and showed how critical approaches to social analysis are very relevant to science, and to our understanding of the need for science. In our time, this line of thought has encouraged philosophers such as Andrew Feenberg to adopt and apply a

critical theory A critical theory is any approach to social philosophy that focuses on society and culture to reveal, critique and challenge power structures. With roots in sociology and literary criticism, it argues that social problems stem more from s ...

approach to technology and science, providing many important insights on how scientific and technological decisions—and their outcomes—are shaped by society, and by capitalism and its institutions. The term ''technocapitalism'' has been used by one author to denote aspects and ideas that diverge sharply from those explained above.

Dinesh D'Souza Dinesh Joseph D'Souza (; born April 25, 1961) is an Indian-American right-wing political commentator, author, filmmaker, and conspiracy theorist. He has written over a dozen books, several of them ''New York Times'' best-sellers. In 2012, D' ...

, writing about

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo Cou ...

in an article, used the term to describe the corporate environment and

venture capital Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential or which h ...

relationships in a high tech-oriented local economy. His approach to the topic was consonant with that of business journals and the corporate management literature. Some newspaper articles have also used the term occasionally and in a very general sense, to denote the importance of advanced technologies in the economy.

Forms of tech capitalism

Tech capitalism can take many forms such as: IP based financing where patents and registered IP of new technology is an instrument for building capitalism. Debt based equity where new and innovative technology is used as the security interest for securing financing or leasing. Tech capitalism in the form of ICOs such as Blockchain capital

References

External links

* {{url, http://www.technocapitalism.com/ Capitalist systems Technological change

Corporate power and organization

Forms of tech capitalism

See also

References

External links