Google will be obliged either to accept Chinese regulations or exit the world's largest Internet market, with serious consequences for its long-term global ambitions. This is a metaphor for our times: America's most dynamic company cannot take on the Chinese government - even on an issue like free and open information - and win.
There are definitely problems with technology companies, mostly around privacy, in my opinion, and the fact that they don't protect our privacy and we haven't passed privacy laws.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who is chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, warned Facebook of the need for consumer protection and an open Internet, and according to 'The Wall Street Journal,' Thune has sent a letter to Zuckerberg asking how the company chooses its trending topics and who is ultimately responsible.
Kamala Harris is fumbling and she's like, 'Oh, I'm going to go after Twitter because Elizabeth Warren sucked all the oxygen out of the room.' She's standing up and saying, 'I'm going to go after Facebook, I'm going to break them up, I'm going to go after all of these big technology companies.'
Political oppositionary activity on the Russian Internet caused the government to pass laws limiting both service operators and users. As a result, the Russian tech environment became much less liberal, losing freedom as one of its competitive advantages.
While I worry about an erosion of truth, I don’t think people want to live in a world where you can only say things that tech companies decide are 100 percent true.
I think we have to be more forward-looking when considering any legislation dealing with technology.
I mean, I don't think the Facebook merger with WhatsApp and Instagram should have been approved. But I'm not for reflexively breaking up tech companies.
We've got to make sure tech companies - all of them - aren't taking steps that will place content beyond the reach of the courts.
It simply isn't acceptable for the likes of Google, Facebook, Amazon and others, which amass data by the terabyte, to say, 'Don't worry, your information's safe with us, as all sorts of rules protect you' - when all evidence suggests otherwise.
If I were Mark Zuckerberg or any of these guys, I would say, "My God. How does the world expect us to deal with this?" I mean, it's too big a responsibility; I think they're going to welcome this. They'll maybe keep it in the private sector, but they'll welcome some form of regulatory operation because they've been so successful that they are a global, public good. Everyone needs them.
Let's face it, the U.S. government is woefully, woefully behind in all of its policies that affect the use of technology.
I think we need to do much more with our tech companies to prevent ISIS and their operatives from being able to use the Internet to radicalize, even direct people in America and Europe and elsewhere.
You know what makes me want to cry? I think, whoever the next Facebook is, why would you ever start that company here in the United States?
We've learned that we've allowed technological capabilities to dictate policies and practices, rather than ensuring that our laws and values guide our technological capabilities.
We won't allow the people to be devoured by YouTube, Facebook or others.
As attorney general, I would work with my colleagues in other states to launch a major antitrust investigation to look into the ways in which Facebook and Google are wielding and may be abusing their duopoly powers.
When the iPhone came out, every CIO in America said, 'You're not bringing that into our corporate environment,' my CIO included.
One day, people in China may be able to see the records of conversations between multinational tech companies and the Chinese authorities.
I think it's important to also realize that this isn't a case of Apple being asked to simply flip a switch or, you know, plug in a wire from one place to another. They're being asked to write new software that doesn't exist. They purposefully did not create this kind of backdoor.
When a handful of tech giants are gatekeepers to the world's data, it's no surprise that the debate about balancing progress against privacy is framed as 'pro-data and, therefore, innovation' versus 'stuck in the Dark Ages'.
My fantasy is that there is a new regulatory body that is in charge of algorithmic auditing.
I'm not a politician, and I do not think I am as effective in this way as people who actually prepare for it - is to focus on technical reform, because I speak the language of technology. I spoke with Tim Berners-Lee, the guy who invented the World Wide Web. We agree on the necessity for this generation to create what he calls the Magna Carta for the Internet. We want to say what "digital rights" should be. What values should we be protecting, and how do we assert them.
This is a political fight. We need to demand accountability for our algorithmic overlords.
As Apple advances the medical promise of its watch and smartphones, it has also made clear that its foremost aim is to steer clear of Food and Drug Administration regulation.
