Algorithmic Economies of Light. The SARS-Cov-2 Micrographs as Algo-Images

his chapter investigates algorithmic imaging dispositives, or algo-images, by situating them within the broader context of a political economy of light and its historical transformations. Initially, the chapter explores a detailed case study focusing on micrographic imaging technologies, encompassing both optical and elec-tronic microscopy, utilised to visualise the morphology, behaviour, and material composition of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The analysis elucidates how micrographic dispositives integrate two distinct image-production paradigms: one reliant upon manipulating electromagnetic energy flows, and another centred around digital data processing. Subsequently, the chapter argues that these paradigms correspond to two successive regimes within the political economy of light: the modern one char-acterised by techno-images, and the contemporary one dominated by algo-images. The conclusion highlights both divergences and continuities between these regimes, emphasising their common epistemological and practical aim: facilitating the cogni-tive and operational appropriation of reality. Ultimately, this analysis contributes to a deeper understanding of how contemporary visual technologies shape our relation-ship with the world through acts of appropriation and expropriation of the visible, which are presently carried out through data capture and management—both visual and invisual.