Latin America becomes a laboratory for techno-supremacy

Latin America is becoming a political and ideological laboratory for techno-supremacy. With Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel relocating to Argentina and Trumpism influencing recent elections, the region is witnessing a dangerous transformation.

The new model combines extreme corporate deregulation, biometric surveillance, and an unconditional geopolitical alliance with Washington. Traditional elites back this far-right framework because it allows them to exploit racial profiling under the guise of “law and order,” aiming to restore colonial hierarchies.

On July 6, Colombian President Gustavo Petro denounced alleged cyber-interference in the second round of elections. In Peru, candidate Roberto Sánchez also alleged fraud after Keiko Fujimori's victory. Though no judicial rulings have been issued, the winners all follow a far-right trend, supporting tough-on-crime stances, close ties with the U.S., and promoting artificial intelligence in law enforcement.

Donald Trump has revived the Monroe Doctrine with the “Trump Lemma.” The U.S. National Security Strategy explicitly aims to expand its list of regional allies. Instead of military coups, legal warfare, and credit pressure, a new pincer movement operates, combining Trump funding with Silicon Valley surveillance infrastructure. Tech corporations are deeply embedded in state apparatuses, such as the U.S. Department of Defense outsourcing military functions to Palantir, a company co-founded by Peter Thiel.

Argentina has emerged as the main testing ground in the Southern Hemisphere. Peter Thiel now resides in Buenos Aires. Javier Milei's administration just issued an AI investment incentive framework called Super RIGI, based on deregulation, limited liability, and tax breaks. This offers extractive-style corporate benefits: cheap energy, customs exemptions, and access to land and water for data centers. Milei touted Super RIGI in the Financial Times, praising the Dutch East India Company (VOC), an entity combining corporate and governmental power that had its own army, currency, legal system, and was built on colonial exploitation.

Before Thiel arrived, Argentina's Ministry of Human Capital announced the “Gemelo Digital Social” (Social Digital Twin) platform to detect patterns, simulate scenarios, and predict policy outcomes. The government did not disclose the provider, operating mechanisms, algorithms, data protections, or human oversight. Congressional information requests remain unanswered.

Biometric surveillance systems are expanding with significant risks. Crime-prediction tools based on arrest records show racial bias because they rely on over-policing in Black and Hispanic neighborhoods. In May, Argentina's Security Ministry signed an agreement with the FBI to use COGIS software and expand mandatory genetic registration to include those charged, not just those convicted. Buenos Aires Mayor Jorge Macri announced a “New DNA Bank for Criminals” and a migration and residency control system based on territorial, social, and racial criteria, along with a “Wall” campaign separating the suburbs.

The Trump Lemma relies on its own intellectual base, crafting discourse about Western superiority, “borders and order,” and criminalizing those who are racialized and protesters. Think tanks like the Adam Smith Center at Florida International University bring together right-wing former presidents from Fujimori to Macri, sharing political scripts. The internal rationale is to restore cultural supremacy, as local elites construct internal enemies that coincide with historically marginalized groups.

The real threat of Trumpism and techno-supremacy in Latin America lies not in technological modernization capacity but in its oppressive function. The region's elites' subservience to Silicon Valley giants is a surrender of sovereignty, driven by their refusal to embrace democratic progress for the racialized majority. By privatizing social control, establishing biological databases of innocent citizens, abandoning sovereignty, and handing natural resources to foreign servers, elites show they are willing to turn their countries into “algorithmic protectorates” to preserve colonial privileges.