
Special Guest Speaker: David Ryan Polgar (Tech Ethicist, Digital Citizenship Expert, and Founder of “All Tech Is Human”)
The Hot Topic
Join us for a special evening session of our new event series, Dirty Ethics, where we have interactive presentations and exploratory conversations on the confounding ethics of AI and other emerging technologies. Our next Dirty Ethics guest speaker is the incomparable and forward-thinking, David Ryan Polgar (tech ethicist, digital citizenship expert, journalist, attorney, founder of All Tech Is Human, and co-host of the Funny as Tech live show and podcast).
The Topic:
” It’s not just about ethical thinking. It’s about changing the rules of the road.” — David Ryan Polgar
The global battle against big tech companies, coming from within their own ranks from employees, is only just getting started. Yet, it has already sent shock waves throughout corporate America as executives and managers face the very real fear that techlash might land on their corporate doorsteps (either from employees, consumers or legislators) if they too wrongly implement, misuse, or wrongly profit from emerging technologies like AI.

But this rising global anger is not just about the technologies, it’s about other behaviors including upholding unfair corporate policies that favor certain people over others, and the shutting out of women and minorities from participating in the design of technologies (not to mention the profits). And speaking of profits, the widening income gap, which is said to be at an all-time high in corporations particularly, surely adds fuel to the techlash fire.
The question is, with our ethics now so misaligned and changing so quickly, and the question of who should be the designer and the enforcer of corporate ethics relating to implementing technologies like AI, where do we go from here and how do we get there? Is there a clear path forward? Is there even enough trust in management at big tech companies (and in corporate America in general) to implement a new ethics code? And how can we effectively use techlash to help us redefine corporate culture and initiate substantive dialogue?
We’ll examine all of this and more with tech ethicist, David Ryan Polgar, and ask the question no one (not even the media) seems to be asking, but that may be the most important question of all:
How are our personal ethics aligned or misaligned with the ethics of big tech companies and how should we hold ourselves accountable for how we consume and disseminate technology (or, more precisely, contribute to the problem)?
This will be an interactive session. Come prepared to participate in lively discussion and share your feedback. Lite bites, beverages and wine included.
EPISODE 21: Dirty Ethics with David Ryan Polgar: Holding Ourselves Accountable for the Tech We Consume
Listen to our latest podcast episode featuring David Ryan Polgar. Charlie Oliver (TECH 2025 CEO) and David, who know each other from the New York tech scene (Charlie has even been a guest speaker on David’s Funny as Tech podcast), explore the difficulties of discussing ethics in technology including what’s NOT being discussed (are we in denial of our own personal ethics?). David shares what he believes are the big three issues we should really be paying attention to in tech ethics today. And finally, find out why Charlie and David demand to know: “Where’s my Tesla??!!!”
HOSTED BY
Moody’s Analytics Accelerator provides financial intelligence and analytical tools supporting our clients’ growth and risk management objectives. The combination of our unparalleled expertise in risk, expansive information resources, and innovative application of technology helps today’s business leaders confidently navigate an evolving marketplace.
The Emerging Business Unit (EBU) leads Moody’s Analytics Accelerator efforts to better understand and adapt to an environment characterized by widespread, technology-driven change. This includes the proactive assessment of new technologies and the exploration of new business initiatives. The EBU delivers on its mission through strategic partnerships with all fintech participants, from startups to global banks.
SUPPORTING SPONSOR
BraveIT 2019, presented by Tierpoint, BraveIT is a unique interactive, thought leadership and networking experience designed for the modern IT professional seeking to boldly innovate their organization into the technological future. At BraveIT we push the boundaries of ideas, creativity and “business as usual.” Attendees of this event and members of the TECH 2025 community receive a special 10% off full ticket price with this code: 10OFFTech2025
About David Ryan Polgar

David is a pioneering tech ethicist who paved the way for the hotly-debated issues around Facebook, privacy, ethical design, digital well-being, and what it means to be human in the digital age.
David is a 3-time TEDx speaker and tech writer (IBM thinkLeaders, Quartz, Dell Perspectives) whose has been featured on CBS This Morning, Fast Company, USA Today, AP, LA Times, The Guardian, CNN.com, BBC.com, SiriusXM, AdWeek, New York Post, and countless other outlets. With a background as an attorney and college professor, he transitioned into an advocate for greater thoughtfulness regarding the creation and implementation of technology. David speaks about tech ethics, digital wellbeing, emerging tech trends, and digital citizenship throughout the US and world (Netherlands, Ireland, Slovakia, Latvia).
He is the founder of All Tech Is Human, an initiative to better align tech with the human interests of users and society, and is the co-host of Funny as Tech–a live show and podcast that tackles the thorniest issues in tech. David serves on the advisory boards for Common Sense’s Digital Citizenship Advisory Council, the non-profit #ICANHELP, and Hack Mental Health. In 2015, he co-founded the global Digital Citizenship Summit. David is currently researching the impact that “scaling intimacy” has on human relationships, and whether we are becoming botified (and less authentic) in our communications.
Follow David in social media: TWITTER: @TechEthicist / LINKEDIN: http://bit.ly/2uLO0rZ
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