(Subscribe to CNBC Pro to see the full interview with Jeff Lawson, CEO of Twilio.)
The U.S. government should consider regulating social media algorithms that drive “what consumers see and read every day,” Jeff Lawson, CEO of Twilio, said in an interview with CNBC.
Twilio has been one of the big American tech companies that has cracked down on the removal of content and apps that promote violence in the wake of the U.S. Capitol Uprising last week. Lawson confirmed Tuesday that Twilio told the popular and conservative social media app Parler that it “violated our terms of service,” prompting Parler to end its integration with Twilio.
“I think our government leaders should try to understand the role of algorithmic systems in driving what consumers see and read every day, because I think it’s an unknown territory for how technology affects individuals even at the social level “. Lawson told CNBC’s “A View from Above.”
“Government officials should seek to understand how algorithms work and why they optimize and what is the social impact of this? Because this is the biggest externality you see today in some of the technologies that society has not figured out what to do. And I think its impacts are quite broad. “
Amazon Web Services, Zendesk and Okta have joined Twilio to withdraw their Parler services in recent days. In recent days, there has been a significant shift among technology companies in eliminating discourses that understand violence, including U.S. President Donald Trump’s permanent ban on Twitter. However, future government intervention, regulation, or possible congressional laws related to how to control hate speech and misinformation will have to be resolved in the administration of President-elect Joe Biden, which begins next week. .
Lawson has publicly supported Biden and given his presidential campaign to defeat Donald Trump. He told CNBC that Biden’s focus on science and politics, and away from tribalism, will be a welcome change for the United States.
Lawson rejected the notion that some tech companies would start attracting customers based on politics.
“What we’re talking about here is hate speech and murder threats,” Lawson told CNBC’s Squawk Box. “This is not a normal public discourse to which we are accustomed in our society. This is a marginal thing. What we are trying to say is that the vast minority of people who engage in marginal conversations of hate speech and assassination and overthrow of governments , that’s what’s not allowed. I’m pretty sure most rational people would agree that this kind of content, mostly illegal, shouldn’t be part of the main services. “
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