Recode Decode: Why tech is "flunking" the diversity test

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about bringing legitimate financial institutions into the formerly-sketchy world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies. In this episode: Garlinghouse's background at Excite@Home, Dialpad, and Yahoo; the "peanut butter manifesto" memo he wrote at Yahoo; moving on to Silver Lake Partners, AOL, and then becoming CEO of Hightail; being recruited to Ripple; the appeal of blockchain and cryptocurrency; working with the banks, not against them; the coming revolution in cross-border transactions; why bitcoin speculators were actually "forward progress"; will there be one cryptocurrency to rule them all?; the "unbanked" people of the world; potential problems facing cryptocurrency; convincing regulators and established banks; why should a big bank like Citi work with Ripple?; who will disrupt the incumbents?; the actual uses of crypto for consumers; and Facebook and tech's responsibility. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

20 Touko 201958min

Jim Collins, the author of business books such as Built to Last and Good to Great, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about his latest work, Turning the Flywheel. In this episode: Collins’ background in business education; his mentor and Stanford colleague Jerry Porras; his past books, including Built to Last and How the Mighty Fall; why he left Stanford and moved to Boulder, Colorado; teaching Jeff Bezos and Amazon how to save the company; how to be a “level-five” leader; what Bill Hewlett and David Packard understood about corporate responsibility; who today is a level-five leader?; the difference between your practices and the core of your beliefs; does tech even have a core?; why the innovators don’t always win; how important is luck?; how is the 2019 bubble different from 1999?; and how Jack Bogle and Steve Jobs stayed young until they died.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

17 Touko 20191h 3min

Preet Bharara, the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and host of the podcast Stay Tuned With Preet, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher. In this episode: Bharara’s background; digital crime and the “ticking time bomb” of hacking threats; why Bharara was fired by President Trump; what he did post-firing; his Twitter fatigue; the public’s newfound interest in the law; his new book, "Doing Justice"; the "first principles" of law that the entire country could benefit from; the Mueller report; how the Southern District of New York thinks about its work; Nancy Pelosi's declaration of a “constitutional crisis”; did social media undermine the Mueller report?; the problem with tech and whether companies will be held criminally liable; how tech will change the practice of law; and should we be optimistic about the future? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

15 Touko 20191h 5min

In this live conversation recorded at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, Recode's Kara Swisher talks with Ash Carter, the former Secretary of Defense under President Obama who now runs the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. In this episode: Government regulation vs. self-regulation in tech; CDA Section 230; privacy laws and the potential for new regulations around the world; antitrust action that doesn't require a breakup; does regulation ruin innovation?; Mark Zuckerberg's plea for regulation; the problems with automated algorithms; AI ethics in lethal warfare and beyond; can we keep AI in check with norms?; tech workers who don't want their companies partnering with the Defense Department; China's AI and surveillance habits; what Carter worries about in tech; Edward Snowden; encryption and the US intelligence agencies; is Congress savvy enough to regulate?; are the tech giants ready for attempt meddling in the 2020 elections?; what tech has done to journalism; and what will actually get Big Tech to change? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

13 Touko 20191h 19min

Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about his recent New York Times op-ed, "It's Time to Break Up Facebook." In this episode: Why Hughes wrote the column; how he met Mark Zuckerberg; how the 2016 election changed his view of Facebook; Hughes' role in the early days of Facebook; the company's "missionary zeal"; Zuckerberg’s “unchecked power” and reactions to the column; "He cannot fix this"; how the FTC screwed up; Facebook Live; Zuckerberg’s interest in Roman emperors; why has Facebook continually failed to fix itself?; the backlash to Hughes' column; how a government-ordered breakup would work; Instagram and WhatsApp; Should Zuckerberg step down?; the FTC’s $3-5 billion fine; the case for a new digital regulatory agency; Tristan Harris' "human downgrading" theory; and will Zuckerberg listen? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

10 Touko 201955min

Author and journalism educator Esther Wojcicki, Silicon Valley’s “mother of dragons,” talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about her new book, How to Raise Successful People: Simple Lessons for Radical Results. In this episode: Why Wojcicki became a journalism educator and why she threw out her curriculum in the mid-1980s; how she became “the Woj” to her students; embracing the internet and news literacy; the state of journalism in 2019; the power of giving kids independence; how Esther raised her own daughters: YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki and epidemiologist Janet Wojcicki; persisting in the face of gender discrimination; why she wasn’t surprised by the college admissions cheating scandal; why relationships, not wealth, lead to happiness; being surrounded by the extreme wealth of Silicon Valley; is the internet corrosive to kids?; how to fix the internet; and how to train and prepare children for the digital age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

10 Touko 201951min

Writer and podcaster Sam Harris talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about his views on Islam, social media, and President Trump. In this episode: Harris’ background; why he wrote his first book; the controversy around his books about religion and why Harris didn’t initially call himself an “atheist"; Islamophobia and Harris’ enemies; Christopher Hitchens and the performance of public debate; identity politics; feminism and hijabs; white supremacists online; the terror attacks in Sri Lanka and New Zealand; the Trump effect; Should Jack Dorsey delete Twitter?; Harris and Swisher’s Twitter history; free speech online; what should tech companies do and what should be done to them?; the “moral panic” side of #MeToo; and keeping focused on the right problems. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

8 Touko 20191h 40min

Tristan Harris, the co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about the latest problem he and his peers are trying to solve: "Human downgrading." In this episode: Harris’ background as a design ethicist Google; how his previous movement, Time Well Spent, was co-opted by the tech industry; how are Apple and Google's "digital well-being" features doing?; the utopian promise of tech; why Harris shifted to focus on “downgrading”; what the Center for Humane Technology does; has Harris gotten through to tech's leaders?; why Facebook and YouTube are worse than Shell and Exxon; digital platforms as cities; what we need to do now; techlash; the (sort of) good news; are CEOs just hoping this goes away on its own?; and why removing Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act is "critical." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

6 Touko 20191h 4min