Akamai Technologies - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

Akamai Technologies is Medium Risk.

Akamai Technologies often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. Akamai occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	High Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	High Risk
Funding	High Risk
Political Actions	Lower Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled 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:

Medium

Rationale:

Akamai Technologies received a score of 80 on the 2025 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. The company recruits employees based on sexual identity issues. The company discriminates against vendors that do not promote divisive sex and gender policies, indicating it prioritizes sexual issues over merit (1)(2). However, Akamai Technologies has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (3).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Akamai Technologies’ HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). Akamai Technologies does not discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs (3).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Akamai’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company provides gender transition guidelines for its employees and a specific benefits guide with a comprehensive explanation of transgender services funded by the company (1)(2). Akamai does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (3).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Akamai signed an open letter endorsing the Equality Act, a contentious proposal to amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act by adding sexual orientation and so-called gender identity as protected categories. The legislation would, among other implications, grant biological men access to women-only spaces such as sports teams and public restrooms, and compel healthcare providers to deliver sex-denying healthcare (1). The company used its Twitter page in 2020 to publicly support gender identity and sexual orientation as protected characteristics under Title VII (2). Akamai also assisted the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council in assembling a list of Juneteenth resources, which included books by critical race theorists Ibram X. Kendi, Robin DiAngelo, and Ta-Nehisi Coates (3). The company is a Ceres Network Member, committed to carbon neutrality by 2040 (4)(5)(6). Akamai CEO, Tom Leighton, denounced various states’ legislative efforts to protect election integrity and security (7).

Criteria:

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

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Akamai’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company covers transgender related costs for its employees and their children, including paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). Akamai underwrites the MTLC’s Diversity Initiatives. This includes the “2030 Challenge”, aiming to double the percentage of black and indigenous employees in tech jobs in Massachusetts by 2030 (3). In 2013, then-Executive Vice Chairman of Akamai Technologies, Paul Sagan, personally spearheaded an ACLU initiative, donating millions in personal funds (4). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of Akamai using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (5).