Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Today in Silicon Valley: Re/code Interviews President Barack Obama

Cyber security, NSA spying, the Healthcare.gov debacle and does the commander-in-chief Snapchat?

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza

Tomorrow Friday, I will be interviewing President Barack Obama, who will be traveling to Silicon Valley for the Summit on Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection.

While those are two big issues in tech these days, there is a lot more that I will be asking him over the course of the 20-minute interview on the Stanford University campus.

Among the topics Re/code hopes to query President Obama about:

  • What scares him about technology; what grade does he give himself as the first “digital” president?
  • The repercussions of the revelations about the National Security Agency’s spying activities
  • The hacking of Sony Pictures by North Korea, as well as the daily digital incursions that consumers suffer
  • The competition that U.S. tech companies face as China and other countries move more aggressively into the space
  • The lessons learned from the cloddish rollout of Healthcare.gov
  • The U.S. government’s opposition to strong encryption from companies like Apple, even as it calls for better data protection for consumers
  • The need for the U.S. to up its game in science, technology and math education, as well as attract tech talent from across the globe
  • And whether our government is really capable of protecting its citizens from cyber threats.

And, because the summit is focused on how we are all impacted by technology, I would like to know how he uses it daily and how he thinks it will impact his life after he leaves office. (Does he watch Netflix? Will he Snapchat? Is he considering an Apple Watch? Would he ever use bitcoin? Also: What is with his BlackBerry obsession?)

Well, that’s a lot, and I may not get to all those questions, but I would love to know what you think I should ask President Obama about tech. So please tweet at me @karaswisher or comment on Facebook.

Until tomorrow Friday — and we will get the video of the interview up as soon as possible, both in full and in excerpts — here is how the White House is describing the multiple events at Stanford. The day includes a meeting that President Obama will be having with a group of tech moguls, such as Apple CEO Tim Cook.

The Summit will bring together leaders from across the country who have a stake in this issue — industry, tech companies, law enforcement, consumer and privacy advocates, law professors who specialize in this field, and students — to collaborate and explore partnerships that will help develop the best ways to bolster our cybersecurity.

From increasing cybersecurity information sharing to improving adoption of more secure payment technologies, here’s a look at the topics that panels at the Summit will address:

Public-Private Collaboration on Cybersecurity

Improving Cybersecurity Practices at Consumer-Oriented Businesses and Organizations

Promoting More Secure Payment Technologies

Cybersecurity Information Sharing

International Law Enforcement Cooperation on Cybersecurity

Improving Authentication: Moving Beyond the Password

Chief Security Officers’ Perspectives: New Ideas on Technical Security

https://recode.net/2015/02/13/how-do-you-solve-a-problem-like-zynga/

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

More in Technology

Podcasts
Are humanoid robots all hype?Are humanoid robots all hype?
Podcast
Podcasts

AI is making them better — but they’re not going to be doing your chores anytime soon.

By Avishay Artsy and Sean Rameswaram
Future Perfect
The old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemicThe old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemic
Future Perfect

Glycol vapors, explained.

By Shayna Korol
Future Perfect
Elon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wantsElon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wants
Future Perfect

It’s not about who wins. It’s about the dirty laundry you air along the way.

By Sara Herschander
Life
Why banning kids from AI isn’t the answerWhy banning kids from AI isn’t the answer
Life

What kids really need in the age of artificial intelligence.

By Anna North
Culture
Anthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque messAnthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque mess
Culture

“Your AI monster ate all our work. Now you’re trying to pay us off with this piece of garbage that doesn’t work.”

By Constance Grady
Future Perfect
Some deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapySome deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapy
Future Perfect

A medical field that almost died is quietly fixing one disease at a time.

By Bryan Walsh