Ancient Wisdom for Big Tech Skeptics | Opinion

As an ex-Google engineer, perhaps I should be spreading the gospel of tech, preaching about how Silicon Valley will revolutionize everything and “make the world a better place.” Instead, I come bearing more ancient wisdom: there is nothing new under the sun. In an earlier era, the potential of the internet was seemingly boundless. In 2011, Wael Ghonim, a former Google executive and a prominent activist during the Arab Spring, famously said, “If you want to liberate a society, all you need is the Internet.” Back then, experts believed social media would be a force for good that would spread…