TechCrunch Mixtape

Behind the curtain of diversity theater

It’s fair to say that most people have heard about diversity reports. And it’s probably also fair to say that most of us have watched, sometimes with a metaphorical bucket of buttered popcorn, as companies crisis-comms their ways out of … crises. But most of us do not know what goes on behind the scenes. On this episode of Mixtape, we chat with ex-Facebook, Twitter and Reddit employee Mark Luckie, author of the upcoming book Valley Girls, which details issues of diversity and inclusion through a fictional lens based heavily on real events.

Artificial intelligence and disability

Mara Mills [http://maramills.org/] * Associate professor of Media, Culture and Communication at NYU * Co-director of the NYU Center for Disability Studies [https://disabilitystudies.nyu.edu/] * Author of Testing Hearing: The Making of Modern Aurality [https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/oso/9780197511121.001.0001/oso-9780197511121] * Twitter [https://twitter.com/maramills] Meredith Whittaker [https://twitter.com/mer__edith] * Co-founder of the AI Now Institute [https://ainowinstitute.org/] * Minderoo Research Professor at New York University * Founder of Google’s Open Research group * Author of the report Disability, Bias and AI [https://ainowinstitute.org/disabilitybiasai-2019.pdf] * Twitter [https://twitter.com/mer__edith] Sara Hendren [https://sarahendren.com/] * Professor at Olin College of Engineering * Author of What Can A Body Do: How We Meet the Built World [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/561049/what-can-a-body-do-by-sara-hendren/] * Co-author of the report Disability, Bias and AI [https://ainowinstitute.org/disabilitybiasai-2019.pdf] * Twitter [https://twitter.com/ablerism]

Making technology accessible for everyone

This week, Megan moderated a panel at the first Sight Tech Global, a conference dedicated to fostering discussion among technology pioneers on how advances in AI and related technologies will alter the landscape of assistive technology. The panel featured three heavy hitters in the accessibility space: Haben Girma, the first deafblind person to graduate from Harvard Law School and who is a human rights lawyer advancing disability justice; Lainey Feingold, a disability rights lawyer who was on the team that negotiated the first web accessibility agreement in the U.S. in 2000; and George Kerscher, the chief innovations officer for the DAISY Consortium.

DEI work needs a structural response to a systemic issue

This week we spoke to Y-Vonne Hutchinson, the CEO of ReadySet, a consulting firm that works with companies to create more inclusive and equitable work environments. We discussed what a Biden administration means for DEI practitioners, how companies are now focusing more on structural change to systemic issues of racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination, and more.

Wellness in the time of the struggle

This week Marah Lidey, co-founder and co-CEO of Shine, joins us to discuss mental health, portfolio diversity and connecting with other founders trying to make it work.