Dr. A.T. (Adam) Kingsmith
Areas of Research
Algorithmic governance and AI accountability
Democratic theory and digital sovereignty
Surveillance, datafication, and data justice
Political economy of mental health and digital capitalism
Gamification, platform logics, and user engagement
Methods
Qualitative methods, especially focus groups and interviews
Quantitative survey design and analysis
Mixed-methodology approaches to social science
Policy analysis and ethical framework development
Game-based and participatory research design
Biography
A.T. (Adam) Kingsmith is a critical social scientist working at the intersections of AI governance, democratic accountability, and the political economy of digital technologies. He is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Digital Governance, Technology and Policy at the Hasso Plattner Institute, where his work focuses on algorithmic governance, digital sovereignty, and the democratic implications of generative AI. Alongside this, he brings an active research focus on gamification and platform engagement, examining how game mechanics are deployed within digital systems to shape behaviour, manufacture consent, and modulate political subjectivity. Prior to joining HPI, he held research and teaching appointments at Humber Polytechnic, OCAD University, and Toronto Metropolitan University, and served as Technical Advisor on AI Ethics and Policy at the Digital Governance Standards Institute of Canada.
His work has appeared in Big Data & Society, the Journal of Psychoanalytic Studies, Global Political Economy, Theory, Culture and Society, and South Atlantic Quarterly, among others, and has been featured in public outlets including The Conversation, CBC News, Mad in America, Public Seminar, and the Los Angeles Review of Books. His forthcoming book, Anxiety as a Weapon, is due out from Athabasca and University of Chicago Press in Fall 2026.
Recent Publications
Kingsmith, A.T. (2026). From rule of law to rule of algorithm: Generative AI's threat to
democracy. Big Data & Society, 13(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517261451
Kingsmith, A.T., & Zehner, B. (2025). Ghosts in the machine: Algorithmic fascism and
the psychopolitics of crisis. Journal of Psychoanalytic Studies, 18(1), 110–114.
Kingsmith, A.T. (2024). Anxious solidarities against the mental health crisis: Connecting
personal struggles to wider social and economic injustice. Global Political Economy,
3(1), 113–131. https://doi.org/10.1332/26352257Y2023D000000001
Kingsmith, A.T., Haiven, M., & Komporozos-Athanasiou, A. (2023). Board games as
social media within, against and beyond reactionary capitalism. South Atlantic Quarterly,
122(4), 795–809. https://doi.org/10.1215/00382876-10779388
Kingsmith, A.T., Haiven, M., & Komporozos-Athanasiou, A. (2022). Dangerous play in
an age of technofinance: From the GameStop Hunger Games to the Capitol Hill
Jamboree. TOPIA: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies, 45(4), 102–132.
Kingsmith, A.T. (2018). We the Affectariat: Activism and boredom in anxious
capitalism. Rhizomes: Cultural Studies in Emerging Knowledge, 34(7).
Education
York University, Toronto, Canada. Ph.D. in Political Science (International Relations and
Political Economy) — 2023
McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada. M.A. in International Relations — 2012
Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada. B.A. in Political Science — 2011
Experience
Co-Principal Investigator, College & Community Social Innovation Fund, Humber
Polytechnic, Toronto
Technical Advisor, AI Ethics and Policy, Digital Governance Standards Institute,
Toronto
Instructor, Faculty of Arts & Science, OCAD University, Toronto
Co-Founder & Director, EiQ Technologies Inc., Toronto Metropolitan University
Research Associate, Conspiracy Games and Countergames Project, Re-Imagining Value
Action Lab, Lakehead University
Selected Presentations
“Chatbots and Capital: Rethinking Mental Health Through Marxian Analysis,” The
Power of Marxist Thought, York University, Toronto, September 2025
“Grey Guattari: Algorithmic Fascism and the Crisis of Subjectivity,” Association for
Psychosocial Studies, St Mary's University, London, June 2025
“Synthetic Data in Emotion-AI: Navigating Privacy, Surveillance, and Ethical
Dilemmas,” University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, September 2024
“Designing with Empathy: Generative AI for User-Centric Solutions” Generative AI and
Justice Conference, University of Montreal, October 2024
“Mental Health in the Digital Age: Insights from an Emotion Scientist” STS Speaker
Series, Toronto Metropolitan University, Toronto, April 2023
“Conspiracy Fantasies and Countergames,” Infinite Games Speaker Series, Centre for
Strategic Futures, Government of Singapore, April 2022