The great conundrum, and an invitation to solve it

• Why does an increased national polarization, juxtaposed with Web 3.0 and a growing urgency for much more “Tech for Good,” offer you an opportunity? Well, driven by America’s mounting culture of valuing the individual over the neighborhood, a disruptive shift toward the good needs to happen. Jamie Diamond, with J.P. Morgan, recently said it best, that “stakeholder” interest should be more balanced with “shareholder” interest. We can meet the moment.
• Why you and I should immediately want to do something is weighed against a backdrop of data from the past two years that shows that bad behavior is trending up, and that philanthropy, church attendance and environmental health are going downhill. With alarm, you’ve noticed that something darker and deeper seems to be happening as well, featuring a long-term loss of solidarity with a long-term rise in alienation.
• Ideally, despite all of its acknowledged downsides, technology that you and I possess—and that we’ve actually helped to develop, either directly or indirectly—is about to be re-directed into “Tech for Good.” This can be a pivot point for our society. You’re joining a mainstream, nonpartisan group whose members have spanned from the U.N., World Bank, tech companies, non-profits as well as storytellers from Hollywood to personal media, there’s a broad commitment from across our society; and we have experience in bringing these together.

Here is how you can help.

We need to come out of the Pandemic with a more balanced 21^st Century Economy. First, we’ve adapted to change more in the past 24 months—and at a faster pace—than we ever have. As agents of that change, you and I can appreciate how remarkable that accomplishment is. Going forward, the space between the physical and digital world will continue to shrink. As a result, new opportunities will materialize with greater frequency, and with immeasurable impact. Through actionable dialogue, we can help determine whether that’s to become a good thing, or not.

Is technology the center of the universe, no. Rather, we as in you and I are the center, and we should view technology as having a seat at the table, not at the center of our experience. We all discuss information overload, and with the rate of change accelerating we need to have positions to deal with this because it is distracting us from our most fulfilling lives.  Redefining the role of Information, Communication and Technology together.

Second, is it possible for us to reboot for the 21^st Century? If so, the potential gained from this tack may be your and my greatest fighting chance yet. You’ll probably agree that potential is the common measure for all of us. Yet, in this case, it will always remain a mere fraction—substantially less than one—without the denominator of our collective effort. With your proven background, you already have a lot going for you, but we offer to find a way to apply that potential to this new problem. That’s why we request your engagement.

You may have observed that it often takes a crisis to help us change strategy and behavior. In turn, with change comes an abundance of opportunity. And that’s when and how we can actually exceed our potential.

As the front lines are being turned upside down, and transformations are accelerating because of technology, the rate of change is moving too fast for business, government and society to adapt vigorously. But you possess experience in building out the technology industry that has powered the economy for the past 50 years. You recognize it’s been used for good, but now increasingly weaponized for self-indulgence.

To keep them from breaking bad, an updated system of communications, new behaviors, governance and accountability must be made to exist. Or, as Jamie Diamond of J.P. Morgan cites, “Stakeholder” interests. To reach our potential, at stake is nothing less than the future of education, business, the environment, faith, and society.

The next generation is shaping up and will determine the future of how we engage and serve our business and social interests. Those of us that are from the 20th century should lean in and add a helping voice for the next generation. Information, Communication and Technology

Teamed with your valuable background, the following are examples of experiences that we can bring to the toolchest:

• Over 20 years ago we developed some of the first cloud platforms, real time communications and decentralized computing. Those potential advancements for society are now being launched across the market as we head into the Metaverse, AI, Crypto and Quantum computing—many of which were pioneered by our network of business and technology leaders. Among these, decentralized computing significantly enhances how we as individuals can connect to each other, consume information that is trusted, and take actions together.
• To boost personal performance for networks of thousands, our team introduced AI to social commerce interactions. We pioneered some of the first Podcasts, built by our (who is “our” community of early adopters of communicating with digital media. We contributed to activating the community of the first videobloggers before YouTube, and established the first social network to advance ocean sustainability, constructed an early marketplace for conducting social commerce with AI-guided digital engagement and video technology, plus much more. We now have available to us so many open API’s and tools to redefine our commercial and social interactions.
• As these examples are intended to illustrate, we have spent decades building a deep network of relationships and would like you to join us in exploring how to define and advance 21^st Century economics for Stakeholder interests, that’s us.

In summary, with your participation, in the first 90 days we’ll develop a three-year road map that will be detailed in a transparent way what we will accomplish after a series of listening posts. Milestones will include establishment of a joint purpose and culture, and an approach for Decentralized Organizations that re-enforces how tech can best support humanity. To serve our interests, this is a 501c3.

This very well may be your and my best chance to help revive both our immediate and broader communities, employing something that you and I have built our lives around—Tech for Good.  We invite your participation and donations. Please share with us your contact information and what you would like to help contribute for to defining how we strive to a better work-life balance.

Two heads are better than one. Can we please talk?

Your colleague,

Dave