What will the future be? A dystopian landscape controlled by machines or a brave new world full of possibilities? Perhaps the answer lies with Artificial Intelligence (AI)--a phenomenon much beyond technology that has, continues to, and will shape lives in ways we do not understand yet. This book traces the evolution of AI in contemporary history. It analyses how AI is primarily being driven by "capital" as the only "factor of production" and its consequences for the global political economy. It further explores the dystopian prospect of mass unemployment by AI and takes up the ethical aspects of AI and its possible use in undermining natural and fundamental rights. A tract for the times, this volume will be a major intervention in an area that is heavily debated but rarely understood. It will be essential reading for researchers and students of digital humanities, politics, economics, science and technology studies, physics, and computer science. It will also be key reading for policy makers, cyber experts and bureaucrats.