The School of Information announced today that Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, will deliver the keynote address at the School’s 2021 commencement ceremonies.
“Brad Smith has been a leading voice on critical issues at the intersection of technology and society, including issues of privacy, human rights, and the ethical, fair, and responsible use of artificial intelligence,” said I School Associate Dean and Head of School Hany Farid. “We are delighted to have him join us to speak to our students who will no doubt be tackling these and related issues in the coming years.”
As Microsoft’s president, Brad Smith leads a team of more than 1,500 business, legal, and corporate affairs professionals located in 54 countries. In his recent bestselling book, coauthored with Microsoft’s Carol Ann Browne, Tools and Weapons: The Promise and the Peril of the Digital Age, Smith urges the tech sector to assume more responsibility and calls for governments to move faster to address the challenges that new technologies are creating.
The New York Times has called Smith “a de facto ambassador for the technology industry at large” and The Australian Financial Review has described him as “one of the technology industry’s most respected figures.” He has testified numerous times before the U.S. Congress and other governments on these key policy issues.
The 2021 commencement honors the I School’s Summer 2020, Fall 2020, and Spring 2021 graduates. The ceremony will be held virtually. Guests are invited watch the event video live at noon on Sunday, May 16, 2021.
