IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/sap/wpaper/wp244.html

Blurring boundaries: an analysis of the digital platforms-military nexus

Author

Listed:
  • Andrea Coveri
  • Claudio Cozza
  • Dario Guarascio

Abstract

This work analyzes the mutual dependence linking digital platforms, i.e., 'Big Tech', and the military apparatus. Three main elements are at the roots of such dependence: an 'originary linkage' binding the development of digital platforms with governments' R&D military efforts, the critical nature of infrastructures and technologies controlled by platforms, and their role as their government's 'eyes and ears' (both at home and abroad). Focusing on the US, we first document the growing relevance of these corporations as Department of Defence contractors. Second, we explore a selection of multi-year contracts entrusting platforms to develop and manage critical technologies and infrastructures for military purposes. Finally, we document the direct involvement of major US-based platforms in war scenarios.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrea Coveri & Claudio Cozza & Dario Guarascio, 2023. "Blurring boundaries: an analysis of the digital platforms-military nexus," Working Papers in Public Economics 244, Department of Economics and Law, Sapienza University of Rome.
    • Handle: RePEc:sap:wpaper:wp244
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.dipecodir.it/wpsap/data/wp244.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mariana Mazzucato, 2018. "Mission-oriented innovation policies: challenges and opportunities," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 27(5), pages 803-815.
    2. Zhongjin Li & Hao Qi, 2022. "Platform power: monopolisation and financialisation in the era of big tech," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 46(6), pages 1289-1314.
    3. Martin Conyon & Michael Ellman & Christos N Pitelis & Alan Shipman & Philip R Tomlinson, 2022. "Big Tech Oligopolies, Keith Cowling, and Monopoly Capitalism," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 46(6), pages 1205-1224.
    4. Giovanni Balcet & Grazia Ietto-Gillies, 2020. "Internationalisation, outsourcing and labour fragmentation: the case of FIAT," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 44(1), pages 105-128.
    5. Cirillo, Valeria & Guarascio, Dario & Parolin, Zachary, 2023. "Platform work and economic insecurity in Italy," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 126-138.
    6. Ann Markusen & Claude Serfati, 2000. "Remaking the military industrial relationship: A French-American comparison," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(1), pages 271-299.
    7. Guillaume Beaumier & Kevin Kalomeni, 2022. "Ruling through technology: politicizing blockchain services," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(6), pages 2135-2158, November.
    8. Christos Pitelis, 2022. "Big tech and platform-enabled multinational corporate capital(ism): the socialisation of capital, and the private appropriation of social value," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 46(6), pages 1243-1268.
    9. Dosi, Giovanni, 1993. "Technological paradigms and technological trajectories : A suggested interpretation of the determinants and directions of technical change," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 102-103, April.
    10. James Johnson, 2019. "Artificial intelligence & future warfare: implications for international security," Defense & Security Analysis, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(2), pages 147-169, April.
    11. Cowling, Keith & Sugden, Roger, 1998. "The Essence of the Modern Corporation: Markets, Strategic Decision-Making and the Theory of the Firm," The Manchester School of Economic & Social Studies, University of Manchester, vol. 66(1), pages 59-86, January.
    12. Edler, Jakob & Blind, Knut & Kroll, Henning & Schubert, Torben, 2023. "Technology sovereignty as an emerging frame for innovation policy. Defining rationales, ends and means," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(6).
    13. Malcolm Sawyer, 2022. "Monopoly capitalism in the past four decades," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 46(6), pages 1225-1241.
    14. Andrea Coveri & Claudio Cozza & Dario Guarascio, 2022. "Monopoly Capital in the time of digital platforms: a radical approach to the Amazon case," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 46(6), pages 1341-1367.
    15. Flavio Calvino & Chiara Criscuolo & Hélène Dernis & Lea Samek, 2023. "What technologies are at the core of AI?: An exploration based on patent data," OECD Artificial Intelligence Papers 6, OECD Publishing.
    16. Shane Greenstein, 2020. "The Basic Economics of Internet Infrastructure," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 34(2), pages 192-214, Spring.
    17. Lundvall, Bengt-Åke & Rikap, Cecilia, 2022. "China's catching-up in artificial intelligence seen as a co-evolution of corporate and national innovation systems," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(1).
    18. Lucrezia Fanti & Dario Guarascio & Massimo Moggi, 2022. "From Heron of Alexandria to Amazon’s Alexa: a stylized history of AI and its impact on business models, organization and work," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 49(3), pages 409-440, September.
    19. Cecilia Rikap & Bengt-Åke Lundvall, 2022. "Big tech, knowledge predation and the implications for development," Innovation and Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(3), pages 389-416, September.
    20. Grazia Ietto-Gillies, 2012. "Transnational Corporations and International Production," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 14379.
    21. Martin Kenney & John Zysman, 2020. "The platform economy: restructuring the space of capitalist accumulation," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 13(1), pages 55-76.
    22. David Mowery, 2009. "National security and national innovation systems," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 34(5), pages 455-473, October.
    23. Stephen Hymer, 1972. "The Internationalization of Capital," Journal of Economic Issues, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 91-111, March.
    24. Rikap, Cecilia & Flacher, David, 2020. "Who collects intellectual rents from knowledge and innovation hubs? questioning the sustainability of the singapore model," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 59-73.
    25. Ramaa Vasudevan, 2022. "Digital platforms: monopoly capital through a classical-marxian lens," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 46(6), pages 1269-1288.
    26. Ramaa Vasudevan, 2021. "The network of empire and universal capitalism: imperialism and the laws of capitalist competition," Review of Social Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 79(1), pages 76-102, January.
    27. Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1991. "The Invisible Hand and Modern Welfare Economics," NBER Working Papers 3641, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    28. Lars Gjesvik, 2023. "Private infrastructure in weaponized interdependence," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(2), pages 722-746, March.
    29. K. Sabeel Rahman & Kathleen Thelen, 2019. "The Rise of the Platform Business Model and the Transformation of Twenty-First-Century Capitalism," Politics & Society, , vol. 47(2), pages 177-204, June.
    30. Cecilia Rikap & Bengt-Åke Lundvall, 2021. "The Digital Innovation Race," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-3-030-89443-6, March.
    31. Ietto-Gillies, Grazia & Trentini, Claudia, 2023. "Sectoral structure and the digital era. Conceptual and empirical analysis," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 13-24.
    32. Jacobides, Michael G. & Cennamo, Carmelo & Gawer, Annabelle, 2024. "Externalities and complementarities in platforms and ecosystems: From structural solutions to endogenous failures," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(1).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Coveri Andrea & Cozza Claudio & Guarascio Dario, 2025. "Big Tech and the US Digital-Military-Industrial Complex," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Sciendo, vol. 60(2), pages 81-87.
    2. Vázquez Rojo, Juan & Visintin, Stefano, 2024. "The US-China race for technological centrality: A network perspective," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 68-83.
    3. Dario Guarascio & Mario Pianta, 2025. "Digital technologies: civilian vs. military trajectories," CIMEO Working Paper Series 185, Centre for Investigation and Modelling of Experimental Observations (CIMEO).
    4. Andrea Coveri & Claudio Cozza & Dario Guarascio, 2021. "Monopoly Capitalism in the Digital Era," Working Papers in Public Economics 209, Department of Economics and Law, Sapienza University of Rome.
    5. Silvia Sacchetti & Carlo Borzaga, 2021. "The foundations of the “public organisation”: governance failure and the problem of external effects," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 25(3), pages 731-758, September.
    6. Sebastián Fernández Franco & Juan M. Graña & Cecilia Rikap, 2024. "Dependency in the Digital Age? The Experience of Mercado Libre in Latin America," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 55(3), pages 429-464, May.
    7. Jürgen Essletzbichler & Manuel Scholz-Wäckerle & Lena Gerdes & Hans-Peter Wieland & Christian Dorninger, 2023. "Geographical evolutionary political economy: linking local evolution with uneven and combined development," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 16(3), pages 543-560.
    8. Roman Stöllinger & Dario Guarascio, 2025. "Assessing Digital Leadership: Is the EU Losing Out to the US?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 36(2), pages 329-371, April.
    9. Damioli, Giacomo & Van Roy, Vincent & Vertesy, Daniel & Vivarelli, Marco, 2025. "Is artificial intelligence leading to a new technological paradigm?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 347-359.
    10. Grillitsch, Markus & Asheim, Björn & Fünfschilling, Lea & Kelmenson, Sophie & Lowe, Nichola & Lundquist, Karl Johan & Mahmoud, Yahia & Martynovich, Mikhail & Mattson, Pauline & Miörner, Johan & Nilsso, 2023. "Rescaling: An Analytical Lense to Study Economic and Industrial Shifts," Papers in Innovation Studies 2023/11, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    11. Baldwin, Carliss Y. & Bogers, Marcel L.A.M. & Kapoor, Rahul & West, Joel, 2024. "Focusing the ecosystem lens on innovation studies," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(3).
    12. Gawer, Annabelle & Harracá, Martín, 2025. "Inconsistent platform governance and social contagion of misconduct in digital ecosystems: A complementors perspective," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 54(8).
    13. Serenella Caravella & Francesco Crespi & Giacomo Cucignatto & Dario Guarascio, 2023. "Technological Sovereignty and Strategic Dependencies: The case of the Photovoltaic Supply Chain," CIMEO Working Paper Series 173, Centre for Investigation and Modelling of Experimental Observations (CIMEO).
    14. Saima Javed & Yu Rong & Babar Nawaz Abbasi, 2024. "Convergence analysis of artificial intelligence research capacity: Are the less developed catching up with the developed ones?," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(4), pages 2172-2192, May.
    15. Ron Boschma & Koen Frenken, 2026. "Advancing institutional theorizing in evolutionary economics," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 53(1), pages 83-94, March.
    16. Lucrezia Fanti & Dario Guarascio & Massimo Moggi, 2022. "From Heron of Alexandria to Amazon’s Alexa: a stylized history of AI and its impact on business models, organization and work," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 49(3), pages 409-440, September.
    17. Chen, Kaihua & Xue, Zehua & Guo, Rui & Ning, Lutao, 2025. "The holistic role of multi-level government in transformative innovation process: Theoretical framework and evidence from China," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    18. Mariana Mazzucato & Caetano C.R. Penna, 2016. "Beyond market failures: the market creating and shaping roles of state investment banks," Journal of Economic Policy Reform, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 305-326, October.
    19. Nathalie Greenan & Dario Guarascio & Jelena Reljic, 2025. "AI and the labour market: opening the black box," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 15(4), pages 925-951, December.
    20. Bassart-i-Loré, Miquel, 2026. "Mixing innovation policies for low-carbon transitions? An agent-based approach," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • L12 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Monopoly; Monopolization Strategies
    • L22 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Organization and Market Structure
    • P12 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Capitalist Enterprises

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sap:wpaper:wp244. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Luisa Giuriato (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://ecodir.web.uniroma1.it/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.