Tide present at SXSW
Looking back, 2019 was a watershed year for the Tide Foundation. A proud moment for us was being invited to present our vision for decentralized identity and data privacy at SXSW in Austin, Texas.
One particular encounter from that trip stands out today as a stark reminder of how far the global conversation on privacy has come, and how much it still hangs in the balance. At an event hosted by the European Union, organized by the very team responsible for drafting the GDPR, we had the opportunity to bridge the gap between European regulation and American policy.
Present at that event was US Congressman Jimmy Gomez, who at SXSW in 2019 made a statement that defined the era for many:
A federal privacy law is simply not a priority in congress.
At the time, those words felt like a cold splash of reality. But fast forward to today, and the landscape has shifted in ways few could have predicted back then. With the recent unveiling of a new draft bipartisan US federal privacy bill, the "impossible" suddenly looks like a possibility.
It makes you wonder: Was the Congressman right? Is a federal law destined to remain on the back burner, or is this finally the moment the US catches up to the standards set by our friends in the EU?
Only time will tell if the current momentum is a genuine turning point or just another chapter in a long-running debate. Regardless of which way the political winds blow, while legislation may take its time to catchup, security is a priority for everyone.
Relive the 2019 SXSW session here.