Artificial Intelligence and Societies: Transforming Work, Business, and Sustainable Prosperity in the Digital Era

Dear Colleagues,

The accelerating development of artificial intelligence (AI) has been transforming the global economy, labor markets, and global governance systems at an unprecedented pace. Consequently, this Special Issue, entitled “Artificial Intelligence and Societies: Transforming Work, Business, and Sustainable Prosperity in the Digital Era”, seeks to explore how digital automation, machine learning, and intelligent decision-making systems are redefining innovation, economic productivity, institutional design, and social well-being in the context of sustainable development and global competitiveness.

1. Background and Rationale

The integration of AI into sustainable industrial and economic systems has created new dynamics and radical changes to efficiency, innovation, inequality, and governance. Nations, corporate sectors, and individuals are experiencing profound structural transformations in employment, production, and business administration as AI contributes to foundational changes in terms of competitiveness and growth. Moreover, the broader implications for social inclusion, sustainable development, and ethical governance remain critical for the future global development and change.

2. Aim and Fit within the Scope of the Journal

In alignment with the mission of Societies, this Special Issue examines how AI reshapes socio-economic systems across technological, institutional, and cultural dimensions, emphasizing the interplay among innovation, sustainable development, business administration, economic policy, and global development. It invites interdisciplinary approaches bridging insights from economics, sociology, political science, management, psychology, public policy, and sustainability studies to provide a holistic understanding of AI’s transformative role in modern society.

3. Themes and Topics of Interest

We welcome original research articles, conceptual papers, and review studies addressing—but not limited to—the following themes and related topics:

• AI-enabled transformation of industries, innovation systems, and labor structures;
• Business administration, entrepreneurship, and corporate strategy in the AI era;
• Digital capitalism, global inequality, and inclusive economic development;
• Institutional adaptation, governance, and regulation of AI technologies;
• Mindful innovation, ethical design, and human-centered automation;
• Economic growth, national competitiveness, and digital industrial policy;
• Sustainable development and the role of AI in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
• Global development, trade, and technology diffusion in the age of intelligent automation;
• Socio-economic resilience, peace, conflict, and sustainability in the digital era;
• AI competition, global power shifts, and peacebuilding in the context of technological rivalry;
• Education, workforce reskilling, and inclusive growth strategies for the AI-driven economy;
• Cross-national comparative perspectives on AI-driven transformation and governance;
• AI applications in finance, healthcare, energy, and smart cities for sustainable innovation;
• Cultural, psychological, and behavioral dimensions of AI adoption and human–machine interaction;
• Environmental, ethical, and social responsibility in the development and deployment of intelligent systems.

This Special Issue aims to deepen academic and policy-oriented understanding of how societies and organizations can balance technological progress with ethical responsibility, sustainable prosperity, and long-term competitiveness at both national and global levels.

Submission window: February 2026–January 2027 (open 12 months, rolling peer review).

Dr. Nguyen Manh Cuong
Dr. Duraisamy Balaganesh
Dr. Kaddour Chelabi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as conceptual papers are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Societies is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• AI-driven transformation
• industrial automation
• socio-economic change
• governance
• mindfulness and ethics
• sustainability
• innovation systems
• digital economy
• global inequality
• resilient societies