Sadiq Khan calls for tech collaboration in tackling hate speech

Sadiq Khan at the UK Tech
100 party.
Getty

• London Mayor Sadiq Khan wants big tech firms to work
  with politicians to end hate speech and election
  meddling.
• Speaking at Business Insider’s UK Tech 100 party, he said
  collaboration will be critical to putting things right, rather
  than snuffing out innovation with regulation.
• It looks increasingly likely that Britain is going to
  introduce new regulations for Silicon Valley’s
  behemoths.
• The mayor wants London to be the tech capital of the
  world.

Business Insider

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has called on tech companies like
Facebook and Twitter to work with lawmakers to put right some of
their missteps in recent years.

Speaking at Business Insider’s UK Tech 100 party on Thursday
night, Khan said there are “challenges facing the digital sector”
and that collaboration, rather than heavy-handed regulation, will
be needed to put things right.

“It is a reality that we have seen elections influenced by
technology. It is a reality that we’ve seen people radicalised by
technology. It is a reality we’ve seen the promotion of hatred,
particularly against women and minorities,” he told a room full
of British tech talent at the top of The Gherkin in London.

“The way to address those concerns isn’t to destroy that
innovation, it’s for the tech sector to work with politicians to
try and grapple with some of these problems.”

Khan, who featured at number 40 on the UK
Tech 100 ranking, was speaking at a time when it looks
increasingly likely that Britain will introduce new regulations
for Silicon Valley’s behemoths.

Influential Conservative MP Damian Collins, who also features on
the Tech 100 list, told Business Insider that
regulation is coming, with firms like Facebook set to be held
to higher standards on things like illegal hate speech.

Khan added that he wants to make London the tech capital of the
world. “London is the tech capital of Europe and my mission is
for us to be the tech capital of the world. Not just because I’m
competitive, but because I can see a difference tech makes to
reshaping our society, reshaping our economy, and reshaping our
culture,” he said.

The London Mayor also praised the breadth of talent represented
on the Tech 100 list. He said: “It shows the ecosystem is so
diverse, from whistleblowers, journalists and chairs of select
committees, to those involved in giant tech companies, those
involved in startups.”