Female tech execs to deliver CES keynotes after diversity outcry
The chief executives of AMD and IBM are set to speak at the tech show after criticism of a lack of gender diversity.
AMD chief executive Lisa Su is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at the annual CES tech show in January.
The female chief executives of two Silicon Valley giants will deliver keynote addresses at CES next year, following criticism earlier this year that the tech show lacked gender diversity.
Lisa Su, the chief executive of AMD, is slated to be a keynote speaker at the annual tech show in January, the Consumer Technology Association, the show's organizer, said Wednesday. Ginni Rometti, IBM's CEO, was named a keynote speaker in August.
Earlier this year, the CTA said it would ramp up its efforts to give women a voice at the conference, following criticism late last year over the all-male keynote lineup announced for CES 2018. The issue came to a head after a year of unprecedented focus on diversity and sexism in the tech community.
The #MeToo movement had just caught fire, raising questions about gender and power. And in Silicon Valley, where companies are largely dominated by men, the so-called brogramming culture was highlighted by harassment scandals at Uber and in the venture capital community.
The CTA said Su's keynote will "provide a view into the diverse applications for new computing technologies ranging from solving some of the world's toughest challenges to the future of gaming, entertainment and virtual reality with the potential to redefine modern life."
Su said in a tweet Wednesday morning she was "excited and honored" to be part of the 2019 CES program.
Excited and honored to be part of the @CES #CES2019 program. So much to talk about in high-performance computing! 😀 https://t.co/s98DxlYKDY
— Lisa Su (@LisaSu) October 3, 2018
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