Communications of the ACM
Innovation Is Overrated: A Provocation
Digital innovation is not working in the interest of the whole of society. It is time to radically rethink its purpose without…
From ACM Opinion
Facebook's Ad Scandal Isn't a 'fail,' It's a Feature
What does it take to advertise on Facebook to people who openly call themselves "Jew haters" and want to know "how to burn Jews"? About $10 and 15 minutes, according...
From ACM Opinion
Google, Not the Government, Is Building the Future
One persistent criticism of Silicon Valley is that it no longer works on big, world-changing ideas.
From ACM Opinion
Are Teenagers Replacing Drugs With Smartphones?
Amid an opioid epidemic, the rise of deadly synthetic drugs and the widening legalization of marijuana, a curious bright spot has emerged in the youth drug culture...
From ACM Opinion
A.i. Inspiration: The Science Fiction That Frames Discussion
Science fiction comes up often in serious discussions about artificial intelligence and weapons.
From ACM Opinion
The Problem With Google's 'star Trek' Computer
Google is hoping to develop its Assistant, a Siri-like technology to be included on the company's new smartphones and other products, into something like the computer...
From ACM Opinion
My 10 Favorite Books: Bill Gates
"Seveneves," Neal Stephenson: This novel about how the human race responds to the end of life on Earth rekindled my love for sci-fi. Some readers will lose patience...
From ACM Opinion
Have Comment Sections on News Media Websites Failed?
Many newspapers and online media companies have begun disabling comment sections because of widespread abuse and obscenity.
From ACM Opinion
Where Computers Defeat Humans, and Where They Can't
ALPHAGO, the artificial intelligence system built by the Google subsidiary DeepMind, has just defeated the human champion, Lee Se-dol, four games to one in the...
From ACM Opinion
A Plan in Case Robots Take the Jobs: Give Everyone a Paycheck
Let's say computers come for most of our jobs. This may not seem likely at the moment; computer scientists and economists offer wildly varying ideas for how deeply...
From ACM Opinion
Eric Schmidt on How to Build a Better Web
Turning Point: The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria declares a war on Twitter.
From ACM Opinion
Stop Googling. Let’s Talk.
College students tell me they know how to look someone in the eye and type on their phones at the same time, their split attention undetected.
From ACM Opinion
With Google as Alphabet, a Bid to Dream Big Beyond Search
Shortly after its founding, Google posted a document on its site called "Ten things we know to be true," an effort to distill its unusual corporate culture into...
From ACM Opinion
Behind the Downfall at Blackberry
Ever since Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis stepped down as co-chairmen and co-chief executives of BlackBerry, neither has spoken much in public about the once-dominant...
From ACM Opinion
40 Busy Years Later, a Microsoft Founder Considers His Creation
Looking at Microsoft’s sprawling product line and 118,000 or so employees, it’s easy to forget that the company started with one modest product made by two ambitious...
From ACM Opinion
Karen, an App That Knows You All Too Well
Thinking about a life coach but not ready to commit to the real thing?
From ACM Opinion
The Math of March Madness
The N.C.A.A. men's basketball tournament started Thursday, but for most Americans the real action began days before, as they pored over brackets, competing to make...
From ACM Opinion
Astro Teller, Google's ‘captain of Moonshots,' on Making Profits at Google X
Google is all over the place.
From ACM Opinion
Tim O'reilly Explains the Internet of Things
Tim O'Reilly has been at the cutting edge of the Internet since it went commercial.
From ACM Opinion
How, and Why, Apple Overtook Microsoft
When Microsoft stock was at a record high in 1999, and its market capitalization was nearly $620 billion, the notion that Apple Computer would ever be bigger—let...
From ACM Opinion