While tech conferences often revolve around granular hardware and software discussions, the Women Transforming Technology conference is taking a different tack, with speakers talking about social issues that affect Silicon Valley and the world.

On-site at the event in Palo Alto, California, Rebecca Knight (@knightrm) (pictured, left) and Jeff Frick (@JeffFrick) (pictured, right), co-hosts of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile live streaming studio, kicked off the event by discussing the tone of the conference and what attendees were talking about. (*Disclosure below.)

They summed up keynote speaker Kara Swisher’s message to Silicon Valley executives: “You are powerful people; you run powerful companies. Act like it.”

Swisher, who is co-executive editor and co-founder at Recode, suggested that these business leaders speak their minds publicly on divisive issues, such as LGBT concerns and immigration. She also expressed dissatisfaction with what she sees as “the navel gazing that Silicon Valley does — how badly they want to talk about the products and the process when, really, the end users really just care about, ‘does it work? What’s it going to do?'” Knight explained.

Frick also noted Swisher’s willingness to take aim at Silicon Valley execs. For example, she cited ride-sharing app maker Uber Inc.’s handling of harassment claims, “which she said is like someone falling down a flight of stairs and they just keep falling and falling and falling,” Frick said.

Gloria Steinem to take stage

Deepening the political tone of this year’s conference is none other than journalist and social and political activist Gloria Steinem, who was set to deliver the closing speech at the conference.

“Kudos to VMware and to the other sponsors of this conference for choosing her. I mean she’s not an obvious choice for a wt2 conference closing address,” Knight said.

Frick and Knight were looking forward to interviewing several attendees at the event who work in tech or on tech-related social issues.

“I am excited to talk to the women at the Clayman Institute for Gender Reasearch,” Knight said.

For instance, Knight pointed out, Lori Nishiura Mackenzie, executive director of the institute, is a guest at the conference and will speak on the Breaking Barriers panel.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of the Women Transforming Technology 2017 event. (*Disclosure: TheCUBE is a media partner at the conference. Neither VMware Inc. nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE