Ghost in the Machine (documentary) ★★½

Situated at the uneasy crossroads of technology, philosophy, and ideological critique, Valerie Veatch delivers an intellectual investigation that interrogates the myths around artificial intelligence with astute sociological skepticism. Rather than marveling at the positive potential of AI, the documentary director takes a sobering look at the narratives it nourishes as well as the propaganda and populism that benefit from it. Who has an interest in pushing the idea that artificial intelligence (an oxymoron, as the so-called algorithms only regurgitate pre-digested data) is the answer to humanity’s problems, and at what cost? These are the uneasy questions at the core of her cinematic critique, premiering at the Sundance Film Festival’s US documentary competition.

Ghost in the Machine stands out among recent tech-savvy documentaries by refusing the seductive futurism that seems so often to define the genre. Premiering at Sundance’s Next section reserved for intellectually or formally innovative works, the fundamental analysis of the myths and minds behind AI erodes the naive belief that this technology was somehow a neutral tool. In fact, it’s far from free of ideological constructs and narratives shaped by historical power and economic ambition. Borrowed from philosopher Gilbert Ryle, the title itself points toward the notion of intelligence as something detachable from the individual. Combining expert analyses with biographical and political insights, Veatch shows how this idea has functioned as a convenient illusion which continues to shape contemporary AI discourse.

Archival material, screen recordings, and digital artifacts weave together voices from philosophy, computer science, sociology, and media theory. The clever visual taxonomy of flagging AI images operates as both a pedagogical tool and a – though somewhat polemical – pointer. The uncanny likeness of fake images illustrates how easy it is for anyone to conflate automation, statistical modeling, and genuine cognition. Loosely structured in eight chapters, the astute account reveals the disturbing connections between early intelligence testing, eugenic ideology, and the contemporary obsession with optimization and prediction. These structural continuities expose how today’s AI systems inherit the biases, stereotypes, and hierarchies of the cultures that produced them. 

Silicon Valley rhetoric, with its quasi-spiritual phrases of inevitability and transcendence, is akin to methodical myth making. It persistently advocates the ideal of an intellectual elite of white male geniuses. This construct is anything but new. Some of the oldest known glorifications of power structures, fictional and real—the Round Table, the Roman Senate—rely on the myth of white men born to lead thanks to their extraordinary intellect or moral fiber. Their supposed superiority justifies their immense privilege and power, which in turn serve to reaffirm said specter of superiority. Eugenics, racism, classism, and misogyny shape the digital DNA of AI, which isn’t designed to question, subvert, or innovate, but to repeat and reaffirm. 

Inspired by the science fiction tales of Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov, who appear in interview footage, the principles of Silicon Valley cherish a techno-totalitarianism based in ideas of biological betterment, engineering evolution, and inherited inferiority. At nearly two hours, the sheer amount of information can feel overwhelming, but the precision and precedence of the conclusions make sure the core arguments aren’t lost. In a media landscape saturated with glossy AI hype and speculative optimism, Ghost in the Machine stands out as a critical counterpoint. Its determined dissection of tech-bro culture and scientific supremacy underscores the dangers of an alleged technological progress looking longingly back to the darkest chapters in history.