The Stack, 10th anniversary edition with new preface by the author: On Software and Sovereignty (Software Studies) - Softcover

Bratton, Benjamin H.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0262553910 ISBN 13: 9780262553919

Publisher: MIT Press, 2026

Synopsis

What has planetary-scale computation done to our geopolitical realities? It takes different forms at different scales—from energy and mineral sourcing and subterranean cloud infrastructure to urban software and massive universal addressing systems; from interfaces drawn by the augmentation of the hand and eye to users identified by self—quantification and the arrival of legions of sensors, algorithms, and robots. Together, how do these distort and deform modern political geographies and produce new territories in their own image?

In his groundbreaking survey The Stack, Bratton anticipated the changes we see around us now. He proposes that different genres of computation—data centers, AI, cloud platforms, mobile apps, logistics, protocols, automation, robotics—can be seen not as different species evolving on their own, but as forming a coherent whole: an accidental megastructure called The Stack that is both a computational apparatus and a new governing architecture. We are inside The Stack, and it is inside of us. 

In an account that is both theoretical and technical, drawing on political philosophy, design theory, and computer science, Bratton explores six layers of The Stack: Earth, Cloud, City, Address, Interface, User.

About this title

About the Author

Benjamin H. Bratton is Professor of Philosophy of Technology and Speculative Design at University of California, San Diego. He is also Director of Antikythera, a think-tank, journal, and book series exploring the future of planetary computation.

Edition details

• Publisher: MIT Press
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0262553910
• ISBN 13: 9780262553919
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 528