.png?sfvrsn=262f5f07_2 "7 Reasons You Don’t Want to Miss Kara Swisher at ChannelCon 2024 (1)")
Kara Swisher has been everywhere lately. Her new book, “Burn Book: A Tech Love Story,” has people talking. Swisher has been at the forefront of the tech industry for decades, holding the powerful to account and illuminating the most significant trends and shifts in our sector—and she’ll be headlining CompTIA ChannelCon 2024, July 30-Aug. 1 in Atlanta. There are a lot of reasons to attend ChannelCon itself, but here are seven why you won’t want to miss Swisher live.
1. She has interviewed everyone who matters in tech.
And she has a very direct, no-nonsense approach. Throughout her career, Swisher hasn’t been afraid to ask the hard questions—the ones everybody wants answered. She has gone head-to-head with prominent figures including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Rupert Murdoch, Stacey Abrams, Kim Kardashian and President Barack Obama. Her fearless reporting and incisive commentary has earned her a reputation as “Silicon Valley’s most feared and well-liked journalist.”
2. She’s optimistic that tech can solve economic and societal problems.
Although her new book is titled “Burn Book,” and she has a self-described love-hate relationship between society and technology—Swisher remains optimistic about tech’s potential to help solve problems. She offers a candid and critical perspective on the tech industry’s impact on our lives and the world at large.
3. She is concerned about how data impacts AI.
The hype around artificial intelligence (AI) cannot be ignored and Swisher has an interesting perspective on how we can best harness it. Spoiler alert: It has to do with regulation. Because AI relies heavily on data that comes from humans, she believes we have to ensure the people controlling that data aren’t the same ones that have historically decided how technology is used and who it benefits.
4. She has advice to help maneuver through the intersection of business and tech.
Swisher has hosted several podcasts, including On with Kara Swisher, Pivot with Scott Galloway (the 2022 ChannelCon headliner), Recode Decode and Sway. The common theme is always the evolving tech landscape, the role of big tech companies and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead—sound familiar? At ChannelCon, Swisher will share her thoughts on how the IT channel can navigate these changes and thrive in the tech ecosystem.
5. She unapologetically values diversity.
In a Wall Street Journal story, Swisher reportedly told women in tech to set their sights on CEO. That ambition, combined with her unapologetic approach is inspiring to women in the tech industry—a group the CompTIA Community is actively recruiting and advocating for. But Swisher doesn’t stop with gender. She believes race, age, experience and geography play important roles as well, saying that “more diverse decision-making power will make life better for everyone.”
6. She tells it like it is.
If you’re looking for a politically-correct, watered-down account of what’s going on in tech these days—Kara Swisher isn’t for you. And while she doesn’t tip toe around the hard stuff, she does call upon the industry to make better, more thoughtful choices. In fact, her new book is a testament to her love for and about tech from someone who knows it better than anyone.
7. She has all the tech tea.
Kara Swisher may not be everyone’s cup of tea—and she’s okay with that—but she certainly has all the tech tea, and we’re here for it. Having real, personal relationships with many of the big tech players before they were big, she has some stories. Who knows what she’ll share with our ChannelCon audience? All we know for sure is that you won’t want to miss it!
Whether you're an MSP or a vendor, or just interested in the intersection of technology, business and society, this headline presentation by Kara Swisher is not to be missed.
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