This week on Elevate Live, we were joined by Kara Swisher, editor-at-large of New York Magazine, the co-founder and editor of Recode, producer, and host of the Recode Decode and Pivot podcasts and co-executive producer of the Code Conference series. Watch the full episode to learn how organizations can demonstrate integrity during COVID-19.
Check out the full conversation below!
On COVID, Silicon Valley and Income Inequality
“Income inequality has been an issue in the US and across the globe for a long time; it’s going to get worse. We’ve created a permanent underclass with no way of standing up. They’re mired in debt, mired in bad education, mired in bad nutrition, and COVID is a straight red line to income inequality. I often tell people in Silicon Valley – you can help this issue around income inequality, or you can bulletproof your Tesla.“
On Gig Workers during COVID-19
“One of the biggest issues is this gig economy, fuelled by tech. COVID has shown that there are a vast amount of people who are unprotected. We treated them horribly. They’re not ‘essential’ workers, they’re sacrificial workers, as Nikole Hannah Jones says…we’re just sacrificing them. They make less than minimum wage and get no protection. But in a crisis they’re essential. What we don’t want to do is create this surf and lord world where people like me can work from home and others just can’t.“
On Big Tech and COVID Relief
“There’s only so much tech can do. They should be giving money, but not issuing a press release every time they do, ideally. They should also be trying to figure out how they can help in terms of data collection. Bill Gates has been doing an amazing job. This is something he has talked about for years – I was at that TED talk. But it’s a shame that rich people have to help. It’s great that he’s doing this but why does it have to come to that? The government should be doing it.”
For more on the impact of tech on crises, be sure to check out our post featuring Scott Galloway!