For the most recent meeting of the JSV Book Club, we were proud to welcome Tom Kemp, entrepreneur, angel investor, and policy advisor. Tom is a member of the JSV family, having founded our portfolio company, Centrify, a leading cybersecurity cloud provider. A technology policy advisor—he lead the campaign marketing efforts in 2020 to pass Proposition 24, the California Privacy Rights Act, and proposed and helped shape the recently-passed California Delete Act—Tom joined us to discuss his best-selling book, Containing Big Tech: How to Protect Our Civil Rights, Economy, and Democracy. We are excited to share a full video of the panel discussion. Read below to learn more.
In Containing Big Tech, Tom exposes the consequences of Big Tech’s digital surveillance, exploitative use of AI, and monopolistic and anticompetitive practices. The book offers actionable solutions to these problems and a clear path forward for individuals and policymakers to advocate for change. By containing the excesses of Big Tech, Tom argues we will ensure our civil rights are respected and preserved, our economy is competitive, and our democracy is protected.
In a panel discussion, Tom shared how his thesis applies to the current state of the venture/tech ecosystem, what regulators have done and are considering with respect to tech policy in the areas of privacy, AI, and competition in key digital markets, and how the “California Effect” is setting the standard for the rest of the US.
Tom was joined by a panel of industry trailblazers from the worlds of academia, policy, and technology, including:
- Panelist: Alastair Mactaggart, founder of Californians for Consumer Privacy, a nationally-recognized consumer privacy advocacy group. Alastair was appointed to the board of the California Privacy Protection Agency. He is responsible for creating the two strongest consumer privacy laws in the United States. From 2016-2018, he led the effort to pass the California Consumer Privacy Act, and in 2019-2020, he authored and sponsored the California Privacy Rights Act, which was successfully passed through ballot initiative Proposition 24 and gave Californians among the most comprehensive privacy rights in the world. Alastair participated in the panel in an individual capacity and did not speak on behalf of the CPPA board or agency.
- Panelist: Roger McNamee, noted businessman, investor, venture capitalist and musician. His book Zucked: Waking Up to the Facebook Catastrophe, confronts Facebook’s privacy issues and its role in shaping modern American politics and culture. A Silicon Valley investor for over 35 years, Roger cofounded Elevation Partners and Silver Lake Partners.
- Moderator: Professor Lydia F de la Torre, an attorney who teaches privacy, data protection, and A.I. courses at UC Davis Law. Lydia is the founding partner of Golden Data Law and served on the Advisory Board of Californians for Consumer Privacy during the Prop 24 ballot campaign and was appointed to the California Privacy Protection Agency board. Like Alastair, Lydia participated in an individual capacity and did not speak on behalf of the CPPA board or agency.
To learn more about the JSV Book Club, visit www.jsv.com/books.