‘Capitalism has to become more humane’: a Stanford economist on big tech, power hoarding and democracy

What happened

According to The Guardian’s source item, ‘Capitalism has to become more humane’: a Stanford economist on big tech, power hoarding and democracy, Mordecai Kurz argues tech oligarchs erode democracy through monopolies – and predicts how the trend may end The billionaires of today are unusually aggressive in their hoarding of cultural and technological influence, according to Mordecai Kurz, a Stanford economist whose research connects monopoly power with political and economic inequality. In his new book, Private Power and Democracy’s Decline, publishing 19 May, he argues the US is living through an extreme version of a pattern that has repeated itself since industrialization: technological power concentrating in the hands of a few, which is eroding democracy. According to Kurz, technological moguls have long seen themselves as superior beings whose natural role is to shape society – so they have no problem disrupting the institution of democracy. During the first Gilded Age, in the late 19th century, as the US was enjoying its firs

Context

The development sits in VINI’s Technology file for readers following technology, science, product policy, markets, infrastructure, and the public consequences of innovation. The original report is linked so readers can check the source account, follow later updates, and compare new coverage against the first published record. The source item is dated 2026-05-18T13:00:48+00:00.

What to watch

Open questions include whether primary sources issue follow-up statements, whether local or market impacts become clearer, and whether additional reporting changes the timeline or adds material context.

Source

Primary source: ‘Capitalism has to become more humane’: a Stanford economist on big tech, power hoarding and democracy via The Guardian. VINI cites and links the source; it does not reproduce the publisher’s full article text without rights clearance.