The cooperative movement at the service of social medicine
Over the past decade, the tech industry has experienced unprecedented growth, but has also faced structural challenges regarding talent retention and ethical data management. In this context, a centuries-old model is emerging as the most innovative solution for 21st-century challenges: platform cooperativism.
Far from being an analog concept, worker-owned companies are finding in video game development and artificial intelligence (AI) a fertile ecosystem to evolve toward more stable, participatory, and above all, human structures.
The video game industry intrinsically depends on creativity and specialized technical knowledge; however, the traditional model typically relies on finite projects that generate high staff turnover and the exhausting phenomenon of crunch. This is where the cooperative model shines through its ability to offer stability and alignment of objectives. When a studio is established as a cooperative, the developer stops being a cog in the machine to become a partner, guaranteeing an equitable distribution of successes and fostering a culture of bold innovation.
Cases like Motion Twin (creators of the hit Dead Cells) demonstrate that it's possible to achieve worldwide milestones through a horizontal hierarchy where everyone receives the same salary and holds the same decision-making power. Studios like The Glory Society or Small Buoyant Armies have joined this model, born directly under this philosophy to protect their creators' mental health and prioritize artistic quality over external investor pressures. In these structures, the product roadmap isn't dictated by a balance sheet, but by the consensus of those who write the code and design the worlds.
Beyond wage equity, cooperativism in gaming attacks the root of talent obsolescence. In the traditional corporate model, teams are usually dismantled after launching a triple-A game, losing decades of accumulated knowledge. In contrast, studios like Socio-Digital or Motion Twin itself foster "technical sovereignty": by owning the tools and intellectual property, developers can afford longer and riskier iteration cycles, without the fear of immediate layoff if a prototype fails. This allows game design to evolve toward more experimental mechanics and less dependence on predatory microtransactions, since the goal is not to extract maximum value per user in the shortest time possible, but to guarantee the studio's long-term viability.
Likewise, this structure enables radical transparency with the community, creating a direct bridge between the "dev" and the player. Without the pressure of a publisher acting as a filter, cooperatives usually adopt much more honest open development or early access models, where user feedback influences design without compromising artistic vision. This alignment of interests generates an ecosystem of "co-creation" where the player isn't seen merely as a consumer, but as an ally of the project. Ultimately, cooperativism is demonstrating that the most innovative and beloved games in the indie scene aren't born from human sacrifice, but from an environment where code and art are the democratic property of those who imagine them.
On the other hand, the rise of artificial intelligence has opened a global debate about data provenance and creator compensation. Against the practice of massive web scraping without consent, cooperativism proposes a collective management model of digital assets that benefits both AI developers and authors.
Instead of fragmented extraction, initiatives emerge like Stocksy United, a stock photography cooperative that manages its authors' rights fairly, or The Content Authenticity Initiative which, although an alliance, lays the groundwork for what cooperatives like Fairly Trained are certifying: that AI is trained with high-quality data and clear legal provenance.
Another pioneering example is DataDividends or "data unions" projects that group citizens together to collectively negotiate the value of their digital footprint. In this symbiotic model, authors receive fair compensation and the industry obtains ethical and legally protected "fuel," avoiding the copyright litigation that currently besieges big tech companies.
The new technological tools can improve healthcare and allow cooperatives to reduce their expenses, which they can reinvest to improve the care quality.
Although they continue to be rare in Spain, this model is widespread in countries such as Uruguay, Denmark or Switzerland, where housing cooperatives represent 10% of the available housing.