Trends: Big Tech CEOs come to Capitol Hill

Hello and welcome to Trending, Business Insider’s weekly look at the world of technology. I’m Alexei Oreskovic, Head of the West Coast Business Insider Office and Global Technology Editor. If you want to get trends in your inbox every Wednesday, just click here.

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This week: Big Tech’s Big 4 will come to town

Getty / Carsten Koall / Michael Kovac / Composite Business Insider

Grab the popcorn and raise a chair. If you’re remotely interested in technology, then you’ve probably heard that CEOs of four of the most powerful companies on the planet must testify (virtually) in Congress today.

There are a few reasons why this is a big problem:

1. Chief executives questioned by the House antitrust subcommittee – Tim Cook of Apple, Sundar Pichai of Alphabet, Jeff Bezos of Amazon and Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook – represent corporations for a combined value of $ 4.8 TRILLION in market value.

   The amount of power and influence these companies wield is so astronomical that it is difficult to understand, and that is only when viewed through a financial lens. Nearly 3 billion people, about one in three people on Earth, trust their products to communicate, stay informed on current news and events, and shop.

   Surprise… CEOs like Bezos and Pichai plan to tell Congress that their companies face a lot of competition.

2. It is the first time that Jeff Bezos testifies at a Congressional hearing.

   Bezos founded Amazon more than 25 years ago, turning an online bookstore into a retail giant that can deliver almost any product you want directly to your door in a matter of days (an incredible achievement that has made him the richest person in the world) without ever having the opportunity to publicly answer questions from legislators under oath at a congressional hearing.

   Pay attention to: Bezos was praised in 2019 when he publicly confronted the National Enquirer, refusing to be embarrassed and, according to Bezos, to be “extorted” due to tabloid selfies and text messages obtained by the tabloid newspaper. But Bezos had many resources and time to organize that moment. On Wednesday, the founder of Amazon, 56, will be alone and the world will be watching his every move in real time.

3. While antitrust is the stated purpose of Wednesday’s hearing, there are so many other critical issues involving these same four companies, including interference in foreign elections and privacy, that the discussion will surely go beyond the limits of competition theory.
   

   AP Photo / Alex Brandon
   
   
   

   To be sure… There will be great and fun political displays of boomerism and cheap tricks. And yes, the quick questions format is not ideal for a substantive discussion. But with presidential elections less than 100 days away, the stakes are high and many questions must be asked.

Business Insider will cover the big event as it unfolds, starting at 12 PM ET on Wednesday, so visit the Business Insider home page for the latest news.

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The day after…

After Wednesday’s action on Capitol Hill, Amazon, Alphabet, Apple and Facebook have a date with Wall Street. Big Tech’s four giants report their quarterly results on Thursday on a true earnings scale. Here is what you can expect:

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“Every time I start something new, something bad happens, but there was a moment of, well, well, this is just another bad thing and I guess I’ve done it before.”

– Jen Grant, CEO of Turbo Systems, who graduated from business school after the 2001 dotcom boom, left Google for a startup called Box during the 2008 financial crisis, and began her work on top of the startup of codeless Turbo software in March, just as the coronavirus pandemic began.

Turbo systems

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We’ve been locked up for five months, and I’m still trying to find the ideal mask.

Then my curiosity was piqued when I heard about this curious contraption of good New Zealand citizens. AO Air’s battery powered Atmos mask has a fan that supplies clean air, as well as a “nanofilter” that removes pollen, dust and other particles. Most importantly, it’s clear, so you can show a smile, a grimace, or a frown to all people who double-shot when they see you wearing this $ 350 space age mask.

AO Air

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Not necessarily in technology:

In New York jails, inmates say they are punished for trying to protect themselves from the coronavirus.

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– Alexei