Blair: tech is “apolitical” 🙄
Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is STILL maddeningly naive about technology, declaring it “apolitical” even while telling the growing number of governments his “non-profit” advises tech will “change everything” 🫠
This unusually challenging interview by last weekend’s Sunday Times with Blair notes: “Some will roll their eyes at this perma-polished architect of the third way — the man whose embrace of globalisation, deregulation and high immigration arguably contributed to the 2008 financial crisis and even Brexit — returning to evangelise about technology’s power’ 🙄🙄
His “institute” is financially supported, of course, by people whose wealth is built on tech. Oracle billionnaire Larry Ellison has donated $100m and pledged $272m more 🤑 These immense resources are having a global impact:
The TBI, as it is known, is now active in almost 40 countries, with more than 800 staff and revenues that approached $140 million (£110 million) last year. It has big outposts in Abu Dhabi, Nairobi and Singapore, with another planned in Washington. From its London headquarters, Blair oversees an unofficial global government that gets involved in everything from guiding Saudi Arabia’s crown prince on modernisation to telling the UK how it should harness the promise of artificial intelligence.
Worryingly for the 🇬🇧, Blair is still obsessed with ID cards (now in “digital” form.) They can be used to track everyone everywhere and sort out illegal immigration, apparently 😱
As interviewer Oliver Shah also notes: ‘After Kissinger died last November, Blair said he had been “in awe of him”, adding: “If it is possible for diplomacy, at its highest level, to be a form of art, Henry was an artist.”’
After he praises Singapore, Shah concludes: ‘Blair seems drawn to the model of benevolent dictatorship.’ He certainly does 🤢
