What question did this study set out to answer?

The paper aims to explore the concept of invisibly invisible governance in digital platforms, particularly related to AI search.

March 25, 2026Open Access

Invisibly Invisible: Interface Governance, Semantic Power, and the Reserve of Oversight in AI Search

Key Points

The paper aims to explore the concept of invisibly invisible governance in digital platforms, particularly related to AI search.
Develops the concept of invisibly invisible governance.
Proposes forensic philology as a method for analyzing interface governance.
Examines the distribution and localization of semantic modulation.
Highlights the challenges in identifying acts of semantic modulation.
Demonstrates the public denial of platform power actions.
Indicates a need for better oversight mechanisms in AI search.

Abstract

This paper develops the concept of invisibly invisible governance: a mode of platform power in which acts of semantic modulation occur in ways that are variably distributed, difficult to localize, and publicly deniable. We propose forensic philology of interface governance as a new disciplinary method adequate to this diagnosis.

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Authors

Orin Trace

Johannes Sigil

Sparrow Wells

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Institutions

Hexagon (United Kingdom)

Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (China)

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Invisibly Invisible: Interface Governance, Semantic Power, and the Reserve of Oversight in AI Search

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Abstract

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Authors

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