In the modern world of digital culture, the issue of the future of humanitarian knowledge is becoming more acute. Critics of traditional humanitarianism accuse it of ineffi ciency and inability to adapt to modern society; proponents argue that it is humanitarian knowledge combined with practice that can help solve the problems of a digital society. The article deals with several interrelated aspects of this problem, including issues of critical evaluation of technical systems, interaction of humanitarian and technical knowledge, the role of digital culture and digital positivism.