Brad Feld

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Hillary Clinton’s Initiative on Technology & Innovation

Jun 29, 2016
Category Government

Yesterday Hillary Clinton announced her Initiative on Technology & Innovation at Galvanize in Denver. I skimmed it quickly and was pleased with how substantive it was. I pondered what Trump’s equivalent would be and decided it is likely to be a tweet that says “Technology loves me.” Fred Wilson had a more constructive suggestion this morning, where he listed out the specific topics he felt were important to address and said that Hillary has now weighed in on them and he’d like to see Trump do the same.

I just read Hillary’s briefing carefully to understand what I agreed with, disagreed with, and thought needed more fleshing out. I didn’t fundamentally disagree with anything and was delighted to see a number of the initiatives I’ve been working on included. Regular readers of this blog will see lots of congruency with my efforts around National Center for Woman and Information Technology, Startup CommunitiesStartup Visa, Global EIR Coalition, Techstars Foundation, Net Neutrality, Open Internet, and Patent Reform.

Similar to my post yesterday on the agenda for the The Center for American Entrepreneurship I’m going to list the outline of the initiatives as an easily accessible overview. If this topic is interesting to you, it’s worth spending ten minutes and reading the full text of the Hillary Clinton Initiative on Technology & Innovation. And, in all seriousness, I hope Donald Trump puts out something similar so we can compare them.


Building the Tech Economy on Main Street

  • Invest in Computer Science and STEM Education
  • Building the Human Talent Pipeline for 21st Century Jobs
  • Increase Access to Capital for Growth-Oriented Small Businesses and Startups, with a Focus on Minority, Women, and Young Entrepreneurs
  • Attract and Retain the Top Talent from Around the World
  • Invest in Science and Technology R&D and Make Tech Transfer Easier
  • Ensure Benefits are Flexible, Portable, and Comprehensive as Work Changes

Investing In World-Class Digital Infrastructure

  • Close the Digital Divide
  • Launch a “Model Digital Communities” Grant Program
  • Connect More Anchor Institutions to High-Speed Internet
  • Deploy 5G Wireless and Next Generation Wireless Systems

Advancing America’s Global Leadership in Tech & Innovation

  • Fight for an Open Internet Abroad
  • Promote Multi-Stakeholder Internet Governance
  • Grow American Technology Exports
  • Promote Cyber-Security at Home and Abroad
  • Safeguard the Free Flow of Information Across Boarders
  • Update Procedures Concerning Cross-Border Requests for Data by Law Enforcement

Setting Rules of the Road to Promote Innovation While Protecting Privacy

  • Reduce Barriers to Entry and Promote Healthy Competition
  • Defend Net Neutrality
  • Improve the Patent System to Reward Innovators
  • Effective Copyright Policy
  • Commercial Data Privacy
  • Protect Online Privacy as well as Security

Smarter and More Innovative Government

  • Make Government Simpler and More User Friendly
  • Open up More Government Data for Public Uses
  • Harden Federal Networks to Improve Cybersecurity
  • Facilitate Citizen Engagement in Government Innovation
  • Use Technology to Improve Outcomes and Drive Government Accountability