Workers inside Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Facebook and others are starting to express that they believe that tech giants wield too much cultural and economic power.
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Amid increased scrutiny of the technology industry from consumers and various governments, Protocol
carried out a survey of about 1,504 tech company employees. The outlet asked a variety of questions, from issues with China or whether Big Tech should be broken up.
When asked whether Apple, Amazon, Facebook, and Alphabet have too much power, 77% of respondents answered yes and only 8% disagreed. Protocol asked the same question about the industry as a whole, and found similar results with 78% agreeing or strongly agreeing.
Credit: Protocol
In a related line of questioning, about 40% of respondents said that technology does more harm than good. Just over 40% also said they believed that Facebook, Amazon, Alphabet, and Apple should be broken up.
A majority of those surveyed also said they want Section 230 reform, though the answers weren't so black and white. Only 62% of respondents said they knew what Section 230, but three quarters of those people said the law should be reformed.
Credit: Protocol
However, most believe that the core principles of Section 230 protections should remain the same, with 65% agreeing with the statement that "tech companies should not be held liable for the content on their sites and products." A whopping 82% of respondents also realize that Section 230 could have an impact on "more than just big tech companies."
On China, 56% of the tech employees say that U.S. restrictions on Chinese technology firms have gone too far. 60% of those respondents also added that U.S. companies should work more closely with China-based counterparts.
Credit: Protocol
However, 46% said that they agreed with the statement that Huawei should be banned from the U.S., and 58% said that a cold war with China would "cripple U.S. tech companies."
A majority of respondents also want regulation for artificial intelligence, with 73% agreeing that it's time for the government to step in. On a separate note, 44% of those surveyed said that Big Tech should stop working with law enforcement entities. A smaller portion, 34%, disagreed with that answer.
Protocol's survey asked questions of 1,504 employees across the U.S. The publication notes that those staffers ranged from "C-suite level executives to associates." Nearly 40% are from large technology companies with more than 1,000 employees and annual revenues eclipsing $500 million.