Twilio

California
Software and Services

Corprate Bias Ratings

Risk Level:

Rating - Danger
High Risk

Twilio, a software company that produces messaging technology for various products, canceled its business relationships with the free-speech social media app Parler. Twilio covers employees' travel for an abortion. The company does not have viewpoint protections for its employees. It has corporately supported LGBTQ causes and opposed election integrity laws. The company regularly speaks out on political and social issues. For these reasons, Twilio receives a "High Risk" rating.

Criteria
Risk Level
Rationale
Corporate Weaponization
Criteria

Has denied service to customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level
Rationale

Twilio cut ties with conservative social media app Parler, due to alleged violations of Twilio’s acceptable use policy (1). Twilio cut ties with similar platforms after the events in Charlottesville, Virginia, in the summer of 2017, and CEO Jeff Lawson encouraged other tech companies to do the same (2).

Criteria

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level
Rationale

The Twilio Impact Fund does not have a written rule prohibiting cooperation with religious organizations (1).

Criteria

Employment policies fail to protect against discrimination based on political affiliation/views and/or religion.

Risk Level
Rationale

Twilio does not protect employees from viewpoint discrimination (1).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy
Criteria

Uses corporate reputation to support ideological causes and/or organizations hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level
Rationale

After a round of layoffs in 2022, Twilio claimed that it decided its layoffs from an “antiracist lens” (1). Twilio has opposed election security laws (2)(3). Twilio has signed onto several Human Rights Campaign (HRC) coalitions opposing Trump-era gender policies (4)(5). Twilio has publicly co-led a DEI-focused panel alongside the HRC (6). Twilio has corporately opposed Trump-era immigration policy (7). Twilio’s CEO Jeff Lawson is a signatory to CEOs For Gun Safety (8).

Criteria

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level
Rationale

After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Twilio announced that it would expand its medical benefits to provide travel benefits for abortion (1). Twilio also funds LGBTQ advocacy groups (2)(3).

Criteria

Uses corporate political contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level
Rationale

Twilio does not have a PAC. However, Twilio funds organizations working on get-out-the-vote efforts for groups that “challenge practices that disenfranchise Black, Latinx, Native American, LGBTQ+, and other underrepresented groups” (1).

All links were last accessed and all information was updated on:
May 22, 2023

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