Democracy Innovators Podcast · democracyinnovators.com

Stefaan Verhulst about governance, decision-making and how to ask good questions

·46 min·3 clips

Women's health is, in his words, 'the least developed medical field' because women’s questions were not taken seriously.

Stefan Verhulst opens by describing how his work began at a foundation in New York focused on using information technology for public purpose. He frames the core challenge as decision-making, not just problem-solving. The discussion stresses that many social problems require changes in how institutions decide. That change, he argues, has to be both legitimate and effective. He pushes back on the idea that data should simply be collected first and questions asked later. The better order, he suggests, is to decide which questions matter before deciding which data to gather. That shift changes the role of open data programs. He uses city government as a concrete example. A city could ask residents, through a citizens assembly or even a simpler community meeting format, which questions should guide public action. Once those questions are clear, the data program can be judged against them. He extends the same logic to universities. Instead of assuming every researcher will independently surface the right question, a university could identify the questions it should prioritize as an institution. That would help align the collective wisdom already inside the system. The discussion treats agenda-setting as a civic skill that has been neglected. Verhulst says society has not built a better way to do it. He is especially concerned that current methods are not very legitimate, because they are often shaped by only a few people who happen to be present when priorities are set. From there, the talk broadens into AI governance. He warns against focusing only on risk profiles and model failure. Another risk is exclusion: many people may be left without access to the tools at all. He ties that concern to global inequality. In places like India and across the global majority, the bigger fear may be falling behind rather than being harmed by misuse. The episode ends with that broader warning still in view, making access and asymmetry part of the governance conversation itself.

As heard by us

A clear argument for better questions before better systems.

Stefaan Verhulst frames democracy as more than solving public problems: the deeper issue is how societies make decisions, and whether those choices are seen as legitimate and effective.

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Why you'd press play

Hear how better questions can change governance, data use, and who gets heard.

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