The Digital Technology for Democracy Lab is a collaboration across the University of Virginia that explores how rapidly evolving digital technologies can challenge, but might also fortify, democratic institutions and practices.
Pioneering transdisciplinary research to explore democracy in the digital age
Our Focus
Upcoming Events
The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want
Tuesday, April 21, 2026 • 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
Online
Research & Programming
Data in the Dark
Automation’s Ecologies
Visual Misinformation
AI & the Environment
Student Technology Council
Technology & Disinformation
Social Contagions
Gender & Tech
Co-Opting AI
Urban Digital Twins
Technology & Democracy Exchange
Data Center Policies
Descendant-Led Digital Humanities Lab & Network
Cryptocurrency & Democracy
Trending
DTD Lab Welcomes New Postdocs & Faculty
Meet the Lab
Reimagining AI for Environmental Justice & Creativity Collection of Essays
Learn More & Download
Insights from the Visual Generative AI Propaganda Convening
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Video Library
FLiNG Report Launch: How Finfluencers, Fin-Tech, and FOMO Shape Young Adults’ Financial Well-being
Cryptocurrency & Democracy
In the News
Fundamental Rights in Brazil from a Women’s Perspective – Contemporary Reflections
Yasmin Curzi, DTD Lab postdoc, contributed a chapter to a new book analyzing fundamental rights from a female perspective focusing on gender equality, democracy, and contemporary legal challenges in Brazil.
A Better Burst
Mona Sloane, DTD Lab faculty co-lead, argues in a new co-authored pre-print, that today’s AI landscape looks a lot like past infrastructure booms—and that this moment is an opportunity to realign it with the public interest.
When Influencers Delegate Replies: How Social AI Agents Shape User Engagement
Steven Johnson, DTD Lab faculty co-lead, co-authored a new paper that he hopes will contribute to the emerging scholarship on the understanding of platform-enabled delegation of social relationship management to AI agents — which we refer to as Social AI Agents.
Join our vibrant lab and help us explore the intersection of digital technology and democracy.
Current Opportunities