Denny JA Reveals the Emergence of a New Social Class Called the Vulnerable Digital Worker, What Is It?

LSI founder Denny JA has stated that Indonesia is witnessing the emergence of the early stages of a new social class arising from the digital revolution. He has termed this new group the Digitally Vulnerable Class (DVC).

This concept was presented in his essay titled ‘The Arrival of Algorithmic Capitalism and the Early Stages of a New Class: Digitally Vulnerable Workers (DVC)’, published via Denny JA’s World on Facebook.

According to Denny JA, the world is entering a new stage of capitalist development that differs from 19th-century industrial capitalism and 20th-century financial capitalism. He refers to this new stage as algorithmic capitalism.

“If industrial capitalism relied on machines and financial capitalism relied on capital, then algorithmic capitalism relies on data and algorithms,” said Denny JA.

In this new system, algorithms do not merely assist the production process but also determine an individual’s access to employment, income, reputation, and economic opportunities.

Millions of online drivers, digital couriers, freelancers, content creators, and online sellers now work through platforms where the rules of engagement can change at any time through system updates.

According to various estimates, digital platform workers in Indonesia have reached approximately 4 million people, while the broader digital economy workforce has expanded to tens of millions.

According to Denny JA, this shift has created a form of vulnerability that has never been known before. An online motorcycle taxi driver can lose their income due to a single app notification. They were not dismissed by a human; they were halted by an algorithm.

He explained that the DVC differs from the proletariat introduced by Karl Marx or the precariat introduced by Guy Standing. The proletariat depends on factory owners, and the precariat depends on an unstable labour market, whereas the DVC depends on algorithms and digital platforms.

“If the market determines the fate of the precariat, then algorithms determine the fate of the DVC,” said Denny JA.

He identified three main characteristics that distinguish the DVC from previous social classes. The first is algorithmic vulnerability, where income, visibility, reputation, and even job sustainability can change due to non-transparent digital system decisions.