Canadians in tech groaned this week as an op-ed from Margaret Wente claimed that teaching code to kids is just a “silly fad.” Luckily, Shopify’s Tobias Lütke was quick to write a response outlining the values that teaching code to kids provides to our society today. The CanCon podcast crew, as a team devoted to technology from a Canadian perspective, was less than impressed by Wente’s views.

The team had also noticed a large number of discussion pieces about initial coin offerings, or ICOs, and their increasing popularity in the tech space. We weren’t the only ones. Three hours before recording this week’s podcast, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) released a notice stating that ICOs will now be required to meet securities regulations in Canada. This news comes just as the SEC (the US Securities and Exchange Commission) has halted trading of Vancouver-based First Bitcoin Capital. The news has the CanCon team realizing there are a lot more questions than answers surrounding the future of cryptocurrency at the moment. What will these new rulings mean for the recently announced Kin cryptocurrency from Canadian company Kik?

Finally, Samsung’s Note series is back in the game. After last year’s Note 7 debacle, the company has regrouped and is now releasing the Note 8. Igor Bonifacic, from BetaKit’s sister-site MobileSyrup, joins the podcast to discuss the latest and greatest in this year’s fall phone releases.

Tune in as CanCon’s podcast crew – Julia Kassam, Aequitas NEO Exchange’s Head of Marketing and Communications, Igor Bonifacic, MobileSyrup Senior Reporter, Erin Bury, Managing Director of Eighty-Eight, and Douglas Soltys, BetaKit Editor in Chief – mounts a defence of digital literacy.

Have some hot takes on the topics that we covered? Maybe you want to suggest something for a future podcast! Perhaps you have a burning question about something you read in tech news that we didn’t cover. Email us, post a comment below with the answer or question, or better yet, rate CanCon 5-stars on iTunes and post your thoughts there.

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CanCon Podcast Episode 82 (08/28/17)

Coding is not a fad

Coding for kids: another silly fad

Teaching youth to code is more than just a ‘fad’

ICOs may be a no-no after recent CSA statement

Ted Livingston says harsh regulations stifle cryptocurrency innovation

Venture capital participation in ICOs? Yes? No? When?

Countries turning to cryptocurrencies?

SEC halts trading on First Bitcoin Capital shares which have gained more than 6000% in 2017

CSA issues a staff notice on regulation of cryptocurrency

Fall means new phones

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 hands on: a second chance

Douglas talks Essential phones

Canadian Content music clip (under fair dealing): “If This Dance Catches On” by Mounties