R. Trebor Scholz
@trebors2025.bsky.social
Prof at The New School | Founder, Platform Cooperativism Consortium + Institute for the Cooperative Digital Economy | Author, OWN THIS! (2023) + UBER-WORKED & UNDERPAID (2016) | Faculty Affiliate, Berkman Klein Center | Advocate for Digital Labor Rights |
Looking for an uplifting online course for the fall? Learn more: platform.coop/blog/pre-reg...
PRE-REGISTER FOR ECO RADICALS | Platform Cooperativism Consortium
Think cooperatives are just big players in agriculture? It is true that your orange juice and vegetables may come through co-ops. For millions of Americans, so does their electricity. But did you know...
platform.coop
Conference Call: This year’s Solidarity AI conference reaches beyond platform co-ops to the broader ecosystem across the digital stack. In Bangkok, we'll decenter the US-centric AI conversation and amplify voices from the majority world. Apply and help spread the word. platform.coop/blog/call-fo...
Call for Researchers and Practitioners | Platform Cooperativism Consortium
Conference website and registration/updates Building Solidarity Stacks What would it mean to design artificial intelligence in service of climate justice, communal care, and local values?
platform.coop
Staff at the nation’s largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility have placed bets on which detainee will be the next to die by suicide, according to new reporting from the Associated Press based on 911 calls and detainee accounts.
At Largest ICE Detention Camp, Staff Bet on Detainee Suicides, AP Reports
Camp East Montana has received several 911 calls in the span of five months about immigrants trying to harm themselves.
motherjones.com
We are pleased to announce the 2026–2027 ICDE Fellows, a cohort advancing research on cooperative digital infrastructure across governance, finance, labor, food systems, and AI, representing 10 countries across 4 continents. platform.coop/blog/icdefel...
Spain offers real evidence that platform logistics can be cooperative: Givit, a worker-owned platform co-op in delivery, now has 900+ members and €12m+ in revenue. www.thenews.coop/is-a-co-op-m...
Is a co-op model emerging in platform logistics? Evidence from Spain
R. Trebor Scholz, founding director of the Platform Cooperativism Consortium, reports on a success story from Spain
thenews.coop
And here the reflections after the event platform.coop/blog/when-wo...
Reflections on the Cooperative AI Conference | Platform Cooperativism Consortium
I am just returning from our conference on Cooperative AI in Istanbul. Part of what I love about conferences—what keeps me doing this, convening these global PCC events —is meeting people who are both...
platform.coop
andi a@andia.bsky.social · 9mo agoFirst day, final session of the #coopAI conference in Istanbul. @trebors2025.bsky.social sharing his thoughts on the Solidarity Stack. Looking forward to tomorrow (+ being less jet lagged!)
Tired of the AI hype, backlash, and “AI for Good” events? Join us in Istanbul for Cooperative AI—4 days linking tech to real movements. 30+ countries, scholars, data labelers, union organizers, co-op leaders. Join the network reimagining AI beyond Big Tech. platform.coop/events/coope...
We are alarmed by reports that Germany is on the verge of a catastrophic about-face, reversing its longstanding and principled opposition to the EU’s Chat Control proposal which, if passed, could spell the end of the right to privacy in Europe. signal.org/blog/pdfs/ge...
signal.org
Trump officials will limit intl. students to 4 years (median to finish PhD: 5.7 years). The justification? DHS claims to protect national security it hopes a threat files an extension after 4 years so USCIS reviews their application. @mclem.org @erikbryn.bsky.social www.forbes.com/sites/stuart...
Trump Deals A New Immigration Blow To International Students
Trump officials have proposed a new rule limiting international students to fixed periods of entry, making a U.S. education more precarious.
forbes.com
What if the digital economy worked for communities, not corporations? A/Prof Trebor Scholz @trebors2025.bsky.social shares real-world alternatives from over 60 countries in this presentation. Listen now on the ADM+S Podcast bit.ly/4fBkbzT #DigitalCoops #PlatformCooperativism #DigitalEconomy
The syllabus of my online course 'AI Without Bosses' ia601403.us.archive.org/14/items/pub... Enrollment is now open to everyone (15 weeks, free with registration, starts on Aug 28th) cpe.newschool.edu/search/publi... Image credit: Clarote & AI4Media / Better Images of AI
Join us Sept 11 for "Beyond Democracy Theater" w/ Dan McQuillan, Emily Tseng, Joan Kinyua, Anna Iovine, Dorleta Urrutia-Oñate, Linda Huber & Trebor Scholz—on worker power + AI alternatives. Register newschool.zoom.us/meeting/regi... #coops #ai #platformcoops Details: platform.coop/blog/beyondd...
Givit, Europe’s largest platform cooperative for delivery, grew 60% in 2024, reaching €9 million in revenue and 837 worker-owners. [article in Spanish] www-eleconomista-es.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.elec...
Glad to share our new piece in Harvard Business Review hbr.org/2025/06/5-wa...
5 Ways Cooperatives Can Shape the Future of AI
AI development is dominated by a handful of powerful firms, raising concerns about equity, accountability, and social harm. AI cooperatives—democratically governed and community-owned—offer a promising alternative through five key interventions: 1) Democratizing data governance by giving individuals control over how their data is used; 2) Bridging research and civil society by grounding AI debates in public needs, not elite institutions; 3) Advancing education to equip members with the knowledge to influence AI systems; 4) Building alternative ownership models to keep AI value creation in stakeholder hands; and 5) Adapting AI for cooperative ends, ensuring systems support solidarity and worker power. Though cooperatives face barriers in scale and resources, these strategies point to a viable, inclusive path for AI aligned with public interest.
hbr.org
Coming up: Trebor Scholz — From Vibe to Viability: A Methodology for Building Transformative Alternatives in the Digital Economy Friday 16 May 5:30pm – 7:00pm RMIT Storey Hall 336 Swanston Street, Melbourne
I’m excited to share the publication of my book Own This! —now not only in Italian, but also in Mandarin, and published by Shanghai Translation Publishing House.
Less than a week left to submit an abstract for the conference 'Countervailing Platform Power', Florence, June 26-27.
Vincenzo Maccarrone@bigmacca.bsky.social · last yr.Less than a week left to submit an abstract for our conference 'Countervailing Platform Power', Florence, 26-27 June. We've now added info on the four great keynote speakers @veenadubal.bsky.social @milamiceli.bsky.social @trebors2025.bsky.social & Vasilis Kostakis www.sns.it/it/evento/co...
Here's an expert saying that "constitutional crisis" isn't the right term **because it doesn't go far enough.** "The president is asserting dictatorial power and ‘constitutional crisis’ doesn’t capture the gravity of the situation.” www.nytimes.com/2025/03/19/u...
Excited to speak at Rutgers’ Childhood Studies Center this morning
Unsubscribe. www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/...
Post owner Bezos announces shift in opinions section; Shipley to leave
In an email and social media post, Jeff Bezos outlined dramatic changes to The Washington Post’s opinions section, and announced that opinions editor David Shipley has resigned.
washingtonpost.com
delivering a university lecture at Rutgers on Thursday. DM me if you want to join.