News by Press Association 15/05/2019, 5:01 pm Send us a story Sign up to our Daily newsletter Five of the world’s largest tech companies have agreed to introduce new measures to their businesses to help eliminate violent and terrorist content from the internet. Amazon, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter have agreed on a nine-point plan of action following a meeting with world leaders and tech firms in Paris named the Christchurch Call to Action. The meeting, hosted by French president Emmanuel Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, was in response to the terror attack on mosques in Christchurch in March, in which 51 people were killed. The attack was live streamed online and widely shared. Prime Minister Theresa May was among the world leaders at the meeting. In a joint statement, the tech companies said they would each take individual steps to improve their policies on violent content, as well as increase collaboration in order to … [Read more...] about Tech giants commit to end spread of terrorist content online
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Tech giants vow to double number of women managers by 2022
Forty-five tech giants committed Wednesday to doubling the number of women on their management boards to 30 percent by 2022, the French presidency said. Alibaba, BNP Paribas, Booking.com, IBM, L'Oreal and Uber were some of the high-profile companies to sign a pledge at the second "Tech for good" summit taking place in Paris. Businesses that reach the goal are then to pursue complete parity including on executive committees, the Elysee palace said in a statement. A recent tech-sector study by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company showed that women occupied just 15 percent of management posts at present, it added. The "Tech for good" summit aims to encourage global tech leaders to think about how new technologies can contribute to the common good, in areas such as education and health. The initiative is the brainchild of French President Emmanuel Macron who was scheduled to dine with 180 leaders of digital companies including Jack Ma of Alibaba, and Ken Hu of Huawei on Wednesday … [Read more...] about Tech giants vow to double number of women managers by 2022
To understand the tech lords, look to their libraries
LITERARY TYPES have long been sniffy about science fiction. Ian McEwan, a feted British novelist, has been at pains to distance his most recent book, about an intelligent android, from “sci-fi”, even though the idea is one of the most picked-over tropes in the genre. Such snobbery is misplaced. Humans are technological animals. Science fiction explores how that power might be used, what sorts of worlds might be built with it and what sublime new estrangements and transcendence may follow. It is a literature of ideas, and, as John Maynard Keynes observed (in a different context), the world is ruled by little else. To see the force of Keynes’s point, consider how the world’s richest man plans to spend his fortune. On May 9th Jeff Bezos outlined his thoughts about the future of humanity. The founder of Amazon sells $1bn-worth of shares a year to fund his rocket company, Blue Origin, which wants to cut the cost of space flight, put tourists into space and help … [Read more...] about To understand the tech lords, look to their libraries
San Francisco outlaws police use of facial recognition tech
San Francisco has banned the use of facial recognition by police and government agencies, the first U.S. city to take such a step as privacy fears mount in the country's technology capital. Backers of the legislation argued that using software and cameras to positively identify people is, as city councilor Aaron Peskin put it, "not ready for prime time." All but one of the nine members of San Francisco's board of supervisors endorsed the legislation, which will be voted on again next week in a procedural step not expected to change the outcome. "The propensity for facial recognition technology to endanger civil rights and civil liberties substantially outweighs its purported benefits," read the legislation passed Tuesday. Facial recognition could "exacerbate racial injustice and threaten our ability to live free of continuous government monitoring," it added. The ban was part of broader legislation setting use and auditing policy for surveillance systems, creating high hurdles and … [Read more...] about San Francisco outlaws police use of facial recognition tech
Wales’ digital tech businesses pass £1bn
Wales’ growing digital technology is turning over £1bn, with 3,600 companies employing 45,000 workers. The standout figure was part of the latest Tech Nation report that found the UK is leading the rest of Europe in tech investment. Tech Nation, the scaleup-network for UK entrepreneurs, which released its annual report this week, found that of the 169 unicorn tech companies created in Europe and Israel 35% were in the UK. The UK tech sector performed particularly well in investment last year. In 2018, the UK managed to attract 5% of global high-tech scaleup investment, placing it fourth in the world – ahead of Germany, France and Sweden. Investment for UK high-growth digital tech firms also grew 61% between 2017 and 2018 – driven in large part by ambitious UK tech scaleups. These scaleups delivered the majority of all tech investments in the UK in 2018 - £5bn of £6.3bn. The UK’s strongest tech sub-sector, and where it currently ranks as number one … [Read more...] about Wales’ digital tech businesses pass £1bn