The theory proposed by historian and philosopher Yuval Noah Harari offers a provocative and profound reflection on humanity's evolution towards a new form of social organization, in which data, rather than the individual, is at the center of the world . According to Harari, the universe, in its most modern conception, can be seen as a continuous flow of data, in which every human being becomes progressively marginalized, while society transforms into a data-centric system.
Yuval Noah Harari: from theocentric religion to “data religion”
In his famous essay "Homo Deus," Harari traces the historical evolution of humanity, beginning with the cognitive revolution that saw Homo sapiens prevail over other living beings thanks to its ability to create meaning and interpret the world. However, humanity now seems to have reached a point where the "second revolution" is about to arrive, a new era that will mark the beginning of the overcoming of humanism . After placing humanity at the center of the world, we are witnessing its progressive deprivation of identity, consciousness, and meaning through the use and dominance of technology.
In this new era, humanity is no longer considered the ultimate goal of creation, but merely part of a vast algorithmic and computational system. The Dataist religion represents the outcome of this vision: no longer are humans, nor even God, worshipped, but data itself. In this scenario, the universe is nothing more than an infinite flow of information, and everything—from decisions to daily actions—is evaluated based on its contribution to this flow.
Dominion over God: Man's Search for Divine Power Through Technology
Harari explores humanity's ancient ambition to elevate itself to divinity, a dream that has inspired religion and philosophy for millennia. With the advent of technology, this ambition is finding a new path to realization: the transition from Homo sapiens to Homo Deus (divine man), a human being empowered by technology and Big Data. The "cognitive revolution" has allowed humans to develop languages, cultures, and religions, but the "technological revolution" we are experiencing could lead to a new form of humanity that transcends humanity itself.
Harari makes a crucial observation: humans, however powerful, have always had to contend with their biological limitations. Today, however, technology is giving humans the ability to overcome these limitations, pushing them toward the creation of a new species, a superman whose abilities could rival those of a god.
The deprivation of human identity in the algorithmic system
In this context, humanity risks losing its identity, as Harari emphasized, particularly in the context of work and decisions, which are now managed by intelligent algorithms and artificial intelligence. Humans, previously at the center of economic and social decisions, are now increasingly being replaced by automated systems that process Big Data. The individual becomes a " cog in the machine , " a cog within a larger system, whose purpose is simply to generate, process, and transmit information.
Automation and artificial intelligence, therefore, not only erode our sense of belonging and identity, but also create a dehumanizing society in which consciousness and individual freedom are progressively eroded. Humans are transformed into entities subordinated to machine control and processing, thus becoming increasingly insignificant in the vast data flux that governs reality.
Yuval Noah Harari: Dataism as a New Religion
One of the most powerful reflections Harari offers is the emergence of a new religion: dataism. In the past, traditional religions attributed every event to the action of a supreme God who watched over the universe. Today, however, humanity faces the "death of God ," as Nietzsche predicted, and the triumph of a new form of technocracy , a technocracy of data . In this new world order, data not only governs our actions, but becomes the very purpose of existence.
Harari's vision raises concerns about how this new dataist religion might impact society: man, reduced to a mere unit of data, loses sight of the meaning of his own life. The value of everything is calculated exclusively in relation to the quantity of data it can produce or that can be used in the larger system. Algorithms are the new priests, and Big Data is the new God , an impersonal and compassionless deity.
“I type therefore I am?” – The algorithm as a new reality
Harari also advances a radical critique of humanity's progressive alienation from authentic experience. If the famous Cartesian statement "cogito ergo sum" (I think therefore I am) defined Western philosophy, today we live in a world where one might say "digito ergo sum" (I type therefore I am). Technology and artificial intelligence are replacing human thought, reducing the individual's capacity for autonomous thought, controlling every aspect of their experience, and leading humans to a progressive disconnection from their authentic selves.
Yuval Noah Harari's Giant Ant Metaphor
In his book Homo Deus, Harari concludes with a disturbing vision of the future: humans, who evolved from chimpanzees to Homo sapiens, could soon become something very different—a giant ant. The metaphor of ants evokes a eusocial society, in which individuals, despite being part of a whole, lose their individuality and free will, forced to act only for the good of the collective. Our technological society, like the ant colony, could soon be governed by algorithms that eliminate the need for human intervention.
The impossibility of stopping the flow of data
A further consideration concerns the perception that this flow of data is inevitable. Although skeptics argue that an invisible hand will guide the process, Harari warns that this "hand" is blind and that attempts to stop this global machine could only lead to the collapse of society itself. The "end of Homo sapiens" could be an inevitable consequence of the growth of Big Data, just as cars replaced horse-drawn carriages without attempting to enhance the latter.
Ultimately, Harari invites us to reflect on a reality that seems to be rapidly approaching, a reality dominated by data and technology, in which humanity may no longer be at the center of the world, but only a small part of an infinite flow that drags us towards the future.
Enrico Delle Donne
References
- Harari YN, Homo Deus. Brief History of the Future, sl, Bompiani, May 2017, first edition.
- Nietzsche F., Thus Spoke Zarathustra. A Book for Everyone and No One, Milan, Adelphi, 1976, forty-third edition.
