Dr Alina Utrata

I am a political theorist focusing on the politics of technology corporations. My work largely sits at the intersection of political theory and critical technology studies, as well as integrating components of international relations and geography. I received my PhD in Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge in 2024, where my thesis was titled “Silicon Valley and the State: Towards a Political Theory of Technology Corporations.” I received my MA in Conflict Transformation and Social Justice from Queen’s University Belfast in 2018 and my BA from Stanford University in History with a minor in Human Rights.

Teaching

I teach topics relating to politics, political theory and technology studies. Previously, I was a supervisor at Cambridge University for papers POL 1: The Modern State and Its Alternatives and HP3: Theory and Practice in History and Politics, Technology Section as well as a supervisor for undergraduate politics dissertations.

My research examines technology corporations beyond the traditional political/economic divide, theorizing how and when corporations may enact a kind of political power both over individual citizens and against the state. Taking an expansive view of corporations in global history, my doctoral thesis researched how Silicon Valley companies have come to control technological regimes—from cloud computing to digital payment systems—and what type of power this confers. I have also published on outer space colonization, comparing contemporary projects for celestial settlements with the histories of colonizing corporations such as the British or Dutch East India Companies and linking them to wider Silicon Valley political exit projects such as cyberspace, sea-steading and network states.

Recent Publications

Utrata, Alina. “Engineering Territory: Space and Colonies in Silicon Valley.” American Political Science Review, 118(3), 1097–1109. (2024). https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/engineering-territory-space-and-colonies-in-silicon-valley/5D6EA4D306E8F3E0465F4A05C89454D6

Utrata, Alina. “Lost in Space.” Boston Review. https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/lost-in-space/

I also host and produce the podcast The Anti-Dystopians: The Politics Podcast about Tech in my free time. https://www.alinautrata.com/podcast

Awards and Distinctions

Lisa Smirl PhD Prize (2023-2024)

Gates-Cambridge Scholarship (2020-2024)

Marshall Scholarship (2017-2018)