The Efficiency Logic and Co-governance Reconstruction of Artificial Intelligence Empowering Social Governance

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is rapidly evolving from a specialized tool to a fundamental supporting structure of social systems, deeply integrating into all aspects of public decision-making, government services, and social governance. The "AI+Governance" model, while significantly enhancing administrative efficiency, has also sparked increasingly intense debates between technological rationality and political values. This article takes this as a starting point to examine the dual logic of embedding AI in social governance: efficiency-oriented technological empowerment and value-oriented governance reconstruction. Research shows that contemporary China is establishing an action framework of "governing efficiency through co-governance": on the one hand, the top-level policy design at the central level has incorporated AI governance into the legal track; on the other hand, local practices are addressing practical challenges such as ambiguous responsibilities, data bias, and the digital divide. The key to future governance does not lie in choosing one over the other, but in building a dynamic institutional balance that enables efficiency and co-governance to support each other.