Think Twice 2026
AI & Governance: Opportunities and Risks for Digital Freedom
17 October 2026 | Brussels, Belgium
Artificial intelligence is no longer a question for the future. It already impacts how we communicate, work, access services, make decisions, and participate in society.
But as AI becomes more deeply embedded in public life, new questions emerge.
How can AI strengthen democratic institutions without weakening human agency?
How can governments use AI responsibly while protecting fundamental rights?
Who should decide how AI is used, what safeguards are required, and who remains accountable when systems fail?
Think Twice 2026 brings together researchers, policymakers, technologists, activists, civil society representatives, and independent voices to explore these questions from different perspectives.
Organized by Pirate Parties International and European Pirates, the conference creates space for open discussion about the opportunities AI presents, the risks it creates, and the choices Europe must make about its digital future.
One platform. Two central conversations.
AI, Data and Identity
AI increasingly depends on data, while identity is becoming central to how people interact with digital services.
What happens when personal data becomes the raw material for automated decision-making?
How should identity be established in an increasingly automated world?
Who controls the data behind AI systems, and what happens to privacy, autonomy and individual choice?
This panel explores the relationship between AI, personal data, digital identity and individual freedom, asking how technological progress can coexist with meaningful control over our own information.
AI and Democracy
AI can influence public services, political communication, information ecosystems and civic participation.
It can help institutions process information and reach citizens, but it can also affect how people receive information, make decisions and participate in democratic life.
What happens when AI becomes part of the machinery of democracy?
How do we preserve transparency, accountability and public trust?
And what role should citizens have in deciding how these systems are designed and deployed?
This panel examines AI’s growing relationship with democratic institutions and civic life, and the choices that will determine whether AI strengthens or weakens democratic participation.