Individuation and Technique: The Unfulfilled Synthesis in the Philosophy of Gilbert Simondon

The article “Individuation and Technique: An Unfulfilled Synthesis in the Philosophy of Gilbert Simondon” conducts a critical analysis of the internal contradiction in the procedural ontology of the French thinker. Its scientific novelty lies in revealing the systemic gap between his universal theory of “individuation,” based on the concepts of “transduction” and the “pre-individual,” and the specific “genetics” of technical objects. Despite the fact that Simondon brilliantly demonstrated the immanent logic of the self-development of technology through the process of “concretization,” he never integrated it as a constitutive core into his model of psychosocial (transindividual) individuation. As a result, his philosophical system showcases a fundamental schism: the ontogeny he proposed does not fully create a comprehensive picture in which technology acts as an active agent in the formation of the transindividual. The methodological approach of the research is built on two interrelated levels of analysis. The first level is an immanent critical reconstruction that reveals the internal contradictions in Simondon's system through a sequential analysis of his key works. This approach uncovers the structural gap between the universal ontology of individuation and the specific theory of technical concretization. The second level represents a constructive synthesis that overcomes the identified limitations through controlled conceptual extrapolation using Bernard Stiegler's theory of “pharmakon.” Such a synthesis allows for a rethinking of technology as an active participant in transindividuation, uncovering the heuristic potential of Simondon's thought for analyzing the digital age and opening new perspectives for the development of procedural ontology. The relevance of this research is determined by the total role of technologies in the realities of platform capitalism in the 21st century. The article argues that it is precisely technical individuation, manifested through digital technologies, that radically redefines the temporality and fabric of collective existence. Neglecting this aspect in Simondon's theory fails to adequately describe, relying solely on his ontogeny, how artifacts and infrastructures become material carriers of the pre-individual, forming tensions between the “psychic” and the “collective.” Overcoming this gap, as proposed in the article, allows for an immanent critique of the legacy of Simondon and brings his ideas into a fruitful dialogue with contemporary philosophy of technology, particularly with Stiegler’s concept of “pharmakon.” This reveals the dual nature of technology as both a threat and a condition for the possibility of a new subjectivity, placing it at the epicenter of sociogenesis.