Innovation And Disruption As A Google Core Value.
On Tuesday 04/27/10, I had the privilege of speaking in New York City to a gathering of hundreds of Google lawyers. I was on a panel moderated by Nicole Wong, VP and Deputy General Counsel for Google, discussing Google’s “innovation and disruption” core value.
Here’s who I spoke with.
Panelists Bios
Steven Levy: Steven Levy is a senior writer for Wired. Previously, he was chief technology writer and a senior editor for Newsweek. Mr. Levy has had articles published in Harper’s, Macworld, The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Premiere, and Rolling Stone. He is regarded (along with Walter Mossberg) as a prominent and respected critic of Apple Inc. Mr. Levy has won several awards, including the “Computer Press Association Award” for a report he co-wrote in 1998 on the Year 2000 problem. In 1978, Mr. Levy rediscovered Albert Einstein’s brain in the office of the pathologist who removed and preserved it. (Bio taken from Wikipedia.)
Nicholas Thompson: Nicholas Thompson is a senior editor at Wired Magazine, a contributing editor at Bloomberg Television, and the author of “The Hawk and the Dove: Paul Nitze, George Kennan, and the History of the Cold War.” He is a fellow at the New America Foundation and an official panelist on CNN International’s “Connect the World” with Becky Anderson. Prior to Wired, Mr. Thompson was a senior editor at Legal Affairs and an editor at the Washington Monthly. He has written about politics, technology, and the law for numerous publications, and he currently writes regularly for the New York Times Book Review. He is a frequent guest on CNN’s American Morning, NBC’s Today Show, and Live with Regis and Kelly. He has also appeared multiple times on every other major cable and broadcast news network. While he’s currently on a touring hiatus, Mr. Thompson is also a fingerstyle guitarist.
Erik Heels: Erik J. Heels is an MIT engineer; trademark, domain name, and patent lawyer; Red Sox fan; and music lover. He blogs about technology, law, baseball, and rock ‘n’ roll at erikjheels.com. Erik has been on the Internet since 1984 and has extensive experience working in high-tech companies such as Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN), Cayman Systems, and Verio Inc. In 1992, Erik wrote “The Legal List,” the first book published simultaneously on the Internet and in print. Erik’s 15 minutes of fame started after reviews of that book appeared in Internet World, Wired, and The New York Times. He has been writing the “nothing.but.net” column for the ABA’s Law Practice magazine since 1996 and regularly speaks about issues related to law and technology. After law school, he worked for various Internet companies, including a four-year stint with Verio, which was sold for $6 billion cash in the largest cash deal in Internet history. In 2001, he launched Clock Tower Law Group. He earned his BS in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and his JD from the University of Maine School of Law (Maine Law).
Rick Klau: Rick Klau is the Product Manager for Google Profiles, where he is a member of Google’s social product strategy team. He is a member of the board of directors for the University of Richmond Law School Alumni Association and for Augsburg Fortress, and is a graduate of Lafayette College and the University of Richmond School of Law. Prior to his current role at Google, Rick managed Blogger, the world’s largest blogging platform. Rick joined Google as a result of its acquisition of FeedBurner, where he ran FeedBurner’s publisher services team. Rick has lent technology advice to two US Presidential campaigns, ran the campaign weblog for President Barack Obama in his 2004 Senate race, ran product strategy for and managed Google’s presence at the Democratic National Convention in 2008, and is the creator of superdelegates.org. He has presented to more than 90 audiences about the impact technology is having on business, politics, and society, and interviews with Rick have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Newsweek, Washington Post, InfoWorld, CIO Magazine, Information Week, and dozens of others. His work has been featured on CNN, in the New York Times, on NPR, and Wired Magazine.
I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to discuss, among other things, Google Buzz, and what Google should do differently the next time it launches a social networking product. My attempt as getting the #glsnyc hashtag to catch on failed, however. Maybe next year!
Related Posts
- TWiL 48 Video: Buzz Kill: 2010-02-19
This Week In Law - Google’s Buzz Tweaks Are Lipstick On A Pig, And Why Google 2010 Is Like Microsoft 1998
Just because something can be done doesn’t mean it should be done. - On Blogocide: Rick Klau, Google Blogger PM, Is Not Evil
Google shuts down music blogs, but it had little choice. - Drawing That Explains Google Buzz Privacy Problems
Think visually before launching technology products.
