Disrupting Politics: Technology, Democracy, and What Comes Next

How did we get from the early optimism of the internet to a world where technology companies sit at the center of debates over elections, free speech, misinformation, and democracy—and what happens now as artificial intelligence ushers in another era of rapid change?

Join Katie Harbath, author of Disrupting Politics: A Front Row Seat to the Collision of Technology and Democracy, for a conversation drawing on her 25 years at the intersection of technology and politics. From her early days as a digital strategist on political campaigns to a decade at Facebook working with political leaders and elections around the world, Harbath had a front-row seat as social media transformed how candidates campaign, voters get information, and technology companies navigate their growing political power.

With the 2026 U.S. midterm elections approaching, these questions are taking on new urgency. Campaigns and voters are navigating an information environment increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, influencers, fragmented media, and rapidly changing technology. Harbath will share stories from inside earlier technological shifts, reflect on what we got right and wrong along the way, and explore what those lessons can teach us about this next election—and the ones that follow.

Rather than asking how we can return to the world that existed before social media, the conversation will focus on a more important question: What can each of us do to help shape what comes next?