Algorithmic Society and the Future of Sociology: Epistemic, Theoretical and Global South Interventions

The rapid proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic infrastructures has created a profound epistemic turning point for sociology. This chapter provides a theoretical and critical conceptual analysis, highlighting how algorithmic systems restructure knowledge production, social interaction, rationality, and governance. Drawing upon sociological, philosophical, decolonial, and media theoretical frameworks, the chapter argues that sociology must undergo epistemic realignment to sustain intellectual authority and conceptual relevance in the twenty-first century. Selective empirical illustrations, such as India’s Aadhaar system and African language AI initiatives, demonstrate how Global South interventions challenge Eurocentric and techno-centric approaches, producing alternative epistemologies and social imaginaries.