What are civic machines?

In 2000 the creator of the world wide web, Tim Berners-Lee, introduced the concept of social machines to describe ecosystems, in which individuals and algorithms participate and interact detached from their materiality, forming complex interaction patterns. Among others, online social networks, algorithmic decision making (ADM) systems, search engines, are all types of social machines, with individuals, software and hardware constantly interacting and resulting in emergent system states.


Civic machines are a subset of social machines, which are designed and function under the idea that technology should serve individuals and the society in a way that ensures equality, justice, political freedom and social inclusiveness.

Civic machines are the “telos” of my empirical and theoretical investigations. Through my research, articles, talks, interviews, and other activities, I showcase political issues as functions of existing social machines and provide ideas, frameworks, and practical solutions towards just, inclusive and participatory socio-algorithmic ecosystems.

Contact me at orestis.p@tum.de with any requests or if you just want to chat!