Open Technology Institute at 15

Celebrating OTI’s 15 years of impact and reimagining the next 15 years of tech policy.

  • Hybrid
  • 740 15th St NW #900
    Washington, D.C. 20005

About

This year marks the 15th anniversary of New America’s Open Technology Institute! To commemorate the milestone, OTI is bringing together game changers from across its vast network for timely conversations around the future of tech policy.
Join us for an afternoon of discussion centering the following questions:
  • What tech policy issues will be significant in the next 15 years?
  • What’s missing in the current discourse around these issues?
  • Are any tech policy issues misrepresented in the media?
  • What should we be doing now in anticipation of the tech policy issues that will likely come to bear in the next 15 years?
The day will end with a reception celebrating the rich community of advocates, researchers, organizers, and innovators who have made an impact at OTI and beyond.

Speakers

  • Kevin Bankston – Senior Advisor on AI Governance, Center for Democracy and Technology

  • Aliya Bhatia – Senior Policy Analyst, Free Expression Project, Center for Democracy and Technology

  • Paul Butler – President and Chief Transformation Officer, New America

  • Michael Calabrese – Director, Wireless Future; Senior Advisor, Technology and Democracy, New America

  • Lilian Coral – Vice President, Technology and Democracy, and Head of the Open Technology Institute, New America

  • Alan Davidson – Head of Government Affairs at Databricks, former Assistant Secretary of Commerce

  • Amina Fazlullah – Head of Tech Policy Advocacy, Common Sense

  • Jaqueline Geis – Research Fellow, Human Rights Center, UC Berkeley School of Law

  • Jay Graber – CEO, Bluesky

  • Chhaya Kappadia – Chief of Staff, Open Technology Institute

  • Josh Kramer – Head of Editorial, New_ Public

  • Sascha Meinrath – Palmer Chair in Telecommunications, Penn State University, Director, X-Lab

  • Sarah Morris – Managing Director, Waxman Strategies, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce

  • Deirdre K. Mulligan – Professor, School of Information & Faculty Co-Director, Center for Law and Technology, UC Berkeley

  • Sydney Saubestre – Senior Policy Analyst, Open Technology Institute, New America

  • Anne-Marie Slaughter – CEO, New America

  • Jameson Spivack – Deputy Director for U.S. Policy, Future of Privacy Forum

  • Jay Stanley – Senior Policy Analyst, Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, ACLU

  • Tajh Taylor – Special Advisor, Product & Technology, Wikimedia Foundation

  • Dhanaraj Thakur – Research Director, Center for Democracy and Technology

  • Prem M. Trivedi – Policy Director, Open Technology Institute, New America

Schedule

Registration 12:30PM - 1:00PM

In-person registrants sign in and pick up name tags.

Welcome Remarks 01:00PM - 01:15PM

Speakers:

  • Anne-Marie Slaughter – CEO, New America
  • Lilian Coral – Vice President, Technology and Democracy, and Head of the Open Technology Institute, New America
Lightning Talks from the OTI Community 01:15PM - 02:45PM

Members of the OTI community take the stage to discuss some of the big tech policy issues on the horizon and present new takes on pressing challenges. Presentations include:

  • Data on the Mind: Mental Privacy and “Neural Data” Regulations in the U.S. │ Jameson Spivack, Deputy Director for U.S. Policy, Future of Privacy Forum
  • State Digital IDs Threaten to Transform the Internet │ Jay Stanley, Senior Policy Analyst, Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, ACLU
  • What’s the Value of Privacy? │ Sydney Saubestre, Senior Policy Analyst, Open Technology Institute, New America
  • Reconnecting Public Media to the Public │ Josh Kramer, Head of Editorial, New_ Public
  • Networking Human Rights Archives │ Jacqueline Geis, Research Fellow, Human Rights Center, UC Berkeley School of Law
  • AI in Defense of Free Knowledge │ Tajh Taylor, Special Advisor, Product & Technology, Wikimedia Foundation
  • Kid Safety in the AI Era │ Amina Fazlullah, Head of Tech Policy Advocacy, Common Sense
  • Interrogating and improving content moderation for indigenous and low-resource languages in the Global South │ Aliya Bhatia, Senior Policy Analyst, Free Expression Project, and Dhanaraj Thakur, Research Director, Center for Democracy and Technology
  • What 6G Should Be: Ubiquitous and Seamless Connectivity, Not Just Another ‘G’ │ Michael Calabrese, Director, Wireless Future; Senior Advisor, Technology and Democracy, New America

Speakers:

  • Aliya Bhatia – Senior Policy Analyst, Free Expression Project, Center for Democracy and Technology
  • Michael Calabrese – Director, Wireless Future; Senior Advisor, Technology and Democracy, New America
  • Amina Fazlullah – Head of Tech Policy Advocacy, Common Sense
  • Jaqueline Geis – Research Fellow, Human Rights Center, UC Berkeley School of Law
  • Josh Kramer – Head of Editorial, New_ Public
  • Sydney Saubestre – Senior Policy Analyst, Open Technology Institute, New America
  • Jameson Spivack – Deputy Director for U.S. Policy, Future of Privacy Forum
  • Jay Stanley – Senior Policy Analyst, Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, ACLU
  • Tajh Taylor – Special Advisor, Product & Technology, Wikimedia Foundation
  • Dhanaraj Thakur – Research Director, Center for Democracy and Technology
Break 02:45PM - 03:00PM

Coffee and snacks will be served.

Keynote Remarks from Deirdre K. Mulligan 03:00PM - 03:15PM

Speakers:

  • Deirdre K. Mulligan – Professor, School of Information, UC Berkeley; Faculty Co-Director, Center for Law and Technology, UC Berkeley; Former Principal Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
A Fireside Chat with the CEO of Bluesky, Jay Graber 03:15PM - 03:45PM

Jay Graber, CEO of Bluesky, joins OTI at 15 for a fireside chat with New America’s CEO, Anne-Marie Slaughter. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A in which in-person and virtual attendees can take part.

Speakers:

  • Jay Graber – CEO, Bluesky
  • Anne-Marie Slaughter – CEO, New America
The Work Ahead: The Arc of Tech Policy and Where We Go Next 03:45PM - 04:35PM

The thought leaders and experts who founded, shaped, and led OTI through its 15-year history join us for a panel on where the field has been and where it needs to go.

Speakers:

  • Kevin Bankston – Senior Advisor on AI Governance, Center for Democracy and Technology
  • Alan Davidson – Head of Government Affairs at Databricks, former Assistant Secretary of Commerce
  • Sascha Meinrath – Palmer Chair in Telecommunications, Penn State University, Director, X-Lab
  • Sarah Morris – Managing Director, Waxman Strategies, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce
  • Lilian Coral – Vice President, Technology and Democracy, and Head of the Open Technology Institute, New America
  • Chhaya Kapadia (Moderator) – Chief of Staff, Open Technology Institute, New America
The Work Ahead: OTI and the Internet We Want 04:35PM - 04:45PM

OTI’s Policy Director gives a lightning talk on how the program is thinking about building the future internet we want.

Speakers:

  • Prem M. Trivedi – Policy Director, Open Technology Institute, New America
Closing Remarks 04:45PM - 04:55PM

Speakers:

  • Paul Butler – President and Chief Transformation Officer, New America
Reception 04:55PM - 06:30PM

Drinks and appetizers will be served following the conclusion of the day’s programming.

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