The halo of the tech fraternity is fading, and by 2025, so too will the glow of the computing industry. While other STEM fields have seen greater workforce participation over the years, the innovative field of computing has struggled to recruit, retain, and respect women and non-binary workers. For example, asking precise questions, abstraction, aggression, sexism, and disdain for altruism—contributing to the social good—are some of the core values that drive the culture of computing. These values and the way they are policed through bias, discrimination, and harassment in tech companies form the “bro code.”
Bro codes perpetuate high tolerance for sexual harassment. It also contributes to the field’s inability to rectify its severe segregation. Only 21 percent of computer programming jobs are held by women. Of that 21 percent, only 2 percent are African American and only 1 percent are Latino. Although women are grossly underrepresented in the sector overall, they have been disproportionately affected by the industry’s contraction. For example, nearly 70 percent of those laid off in technology sector layoffs in 2022 were women. This is based on my experience in Big Tech. As soon as the company went public, shareholders demanded annual layoffs. For the first two years, the only women fired in my department were women.
Additionally, thanks to their vast wealth and impressive branding, Bro Code bosses believe they are wizards or clerics. They are encouraged to become authoritarian and to suppress grievances and resistance. Some programmers copy this behavior. For example, in 2023, tech friends flocked to Grace Hopper Celebration, the world’s largest conference for women and non-binary tech workers. Some of the female participants I spoke to said they were verbally harassed and assaulted simply by men lining up and barging in front of them at career expos.
In 2025, the march toward the future dictated by our algorithmic overlords will be thwarted. A coalition of feminist and labor movements will increase public scrutiny of tech culture. These efforts will begin to crack the Bro Code. While Bro Code’s bosses have talked loudly about its socially revolutionary impact, participants in my research have felt frustrated when trying to use their technical skills to serve others. I was there. For example, Lin reported that an eye-tracking device he developed to help people with disabilities was repurposed for marketing analysis. When Shauna worked on a project to help people who were disenfranchised with computing, her lab colleagues nicknamed her “Accessibility Bitch.”
The public continues to grow disillusioned with the industry as Big Tech companies continue to offer empty promises rather than solutions to social problems, while dodging taxes, canceling regulations, and fueling a yawning wage gap. Dew. In 2025, altruistic efforts like Shona and Lin’s will be thwarted and skepticism about computing’s contribution to humanity will accelerate.
Disenfranchised tech workers will hold Bro Code accountable for not only failing to live up to their widely known altruism, but also for their efforts to hide the social harms of their products. We will continue to cooperate with them in the future. As recent organizing efforts by high-tech workers demonstrate, strong coalitions among workers are what most frighten these ruling elites. For example, in 2018, more than 20,000 Google employees around the world went on strike against sexual harassment and systemic racism at the company. In 2025, there will be more activism against militarization, racism, sexism, and economic exploitation in the tech industry than there are Bro Code bosses’ space jets.
