US: Bill Gates: Big Tech must be regulated now

Bill Gates says the US government must step up its regulation of big tech companies, reported CNN.

“Technology has become so central that governments have to think: What does that mean about elections? What does that mean about bullying? What does it mean about wiretapping authorities that let you find out what’s going on financially or drug money laundering, things like that,” the Microsoft founder said at the Economic Club of Washington, DC, on Monday, June 24. “So, yes, the government needs to get involved.”

Gates discussed everything from the early days of Microsoft, to his investments in clean energy during the talk. But his thoughts on government interference in the tech sector were particularly relevant given recent government scrutiny of the size, influence, and privacy practices of tech companies such as Facebook, Amazon, Apple, and Google by both antitrust enforcement agencies and political candidates.

Gates said he expects “there will be more regulation of the tech sector,” particularly as it relates to privacy issues. The protection of user privacy and use of user data has been a flashpoint especially for Facebook, which has been criticized for multiple data scandals.