The first message was sent over Arpanet, the precursor to the Internet, in October 1969. Now, a half-century later, the Net has changed the world—enabling unprecedented communication, widespread access to education and ideas, and a range of services that have improved business and quality of life for billions. That same technology platform, though, is increasingly a tool for misinformation, fraud, and even cyber warfare and repression—to the point some of the Internet’s creators and other leaders favor rebuilding key parts of the architecture to focus on issues like data ownership, privacy, and security, or even tearing it down and starting from scratch.
Net@50 is a special two-part gathering taking a critical look at the Internet today and where it is heading—part of a new exploration by the World Frontiers Forum into ways to enhance and protect digital identity, privacy, and safety. A gala dinner will honor the Internet’s pioneers and bring together past, present, and future technology and business leaders.