The other day, I was listening to one...

The other day, I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, Sharp Tech, and an emailer suggested an update to the "data is the new oil" metaphor: "data is the new uranium." " "" "With all the recent data breaches and regulatory scrutiny (and fines) surrounding the use of personal data by big software companies, the notion of "data is the new oil" has not been a reality recently. That's where this uranium metaphor is an interesting update. " "" "However, this new metaphor faced opposition from Ben Thompson, who argued that sand is a more fitting comparison. Sand, he pointed out, is ubiquitous and a crucial component of semiconductors, a key technology. " "" "Yet, the uranium metaphor is quite fitting. Like certain types of data today, uranium can be hazardous. However, when handled expertly, it can yield remarkable results, as seen in nuclear energy and many of the data-driven innovations we use daily. " "" "Data on its own is pretty useless, just like uranium, but when harnessed in just the right way, with the right processes and safeguards, both data and uranium are immense sources of power and business value." "" "Those processes and safeguards are in their infantile states for data, so there's a ton more work to do to make the technology as safe as we want it to be, and that's again where the analogy to uranium is so apt. Nuclear weapons threaten everyone, as does data unleashed in nefarious ways. At both LinkedIn and Sentitrac, establishing such processes that can be trusted is critical and a space I'm very excited to be working in!

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Original post on LinkedIn