Focusing on social robots, play, and democracy, this volume explores how AI can be used in connective ways to advance the common good and support democratic practice.

This innovative collection puts play at the center of how we think about AI and democracy, exploring how playful participation may be used to help restore the creative energies of democracy. Featuring contributions by seasoned experts, the chapters explore topics such as social robots, play, and democracy; polymorphic chatbots and online interactions; AI curation by bot-supported agents and participatory environments; social robots, journalism, and connective action; civility and AI; collaboration between human and robotic agents in democratic spaces; democratic experiments, generative AI, and polymorphic robots; gaming, play, and democratic engagement between humans and nonhumans; and AI, play, and democracy. This book presents new ideas for how connective AI and social robots could be used to help reimagine and improve our everyday lives; specifically, how playful interaction with robotic agents could help revive civic engagement, thus ushering in a new paradigm for connective AI.

This book will be of interest to upper-level students, researchers, and scholars across a variety of fields, including media and communication studies, science and technology studies, and political science, particularly those exploring AI and human–computer interaction in relation to democracy and civic life.