The think tanks roll into Techistan
From Politico:
LAS VEGAS — The floor at CES this year isn’t just full of tech companies hawking their newest wares — it’s also packed with think-tankers bringing their own perspective to the convention’s ongoing conversation about how tech is shaping society, and vice versa…
Even among some thinkers on the right today, there’s a growing consensus that the ethos of “permissionless innovation” that’s defined American tech policy over the past few decades has in large part created the big-picture problems with tech Congress now must tackle. The extent of smartphone data collection and the deleterious side effects of social media, to name two examples, didn’t appear on Washington’s radar until long after they’d taken their toll. There’s a palpable sense at CES that both sides want that to change…
I spoke today with Brandon Pugh, the director of cyber, privacy and emerging threats at the free-market R Street Institute, who landed in Vegas this week with a mind to hatch new ideas about how government can get more active in the tech world without adding too much friction to the sector’s innovation.
One issue he sees as crucial: A stronger push on cybersecurity at the federal level, something that will only become more salient with the rise of quantum computing and sophisticated AI technology.
“I made a loud request internally that we should have representation here on the cyber[security] side,” Pugh told me. “I think there’s a balance. Government should not be too involved in everyday life, but cyber is an important exception… if we don’t have federal law, states will continue to make their own, which is a nightmare for bureaucracy, consumers, and security all at the same time.”
If it’s unexpected for a free-marketeer to be calling for a new national law, that’s just one of many examples of how the accelerating rate of tech innovation is scrambling American politics. Whatever their motivations, tech policy thinkers are increasingly pushing for the same things: Greater consumer protections; more transparency and accountability on the part of tech giants; and a robust support system for domestic innovation and industry to help the U.S. compete with China…
