Leaders and trendsetters all agree on one thing
See what world leaders, celebrities, politicians, business titans, and more have to say about the importance of computer science.
Check out quotes from: Celebrities, Artists, and Athletes | Technology and Business Experts | Education and Science Leaders | Politicians
Celebrities, Artists, and Athletes
Jessica Alba
Actress and Founder, The Honest Company
There's so much that's possible with technology, especially if you can learn how to code. You can create anything you want and reach everyone in the world.
Aloe Blacc
Musician and Producer
Any machine that you're using has code that was developed by human beings. If you can figure out how to be one of those human beings, then you're that much further in life. You're in control of your communication, you're in control of your destiny.
Steph Curry
Three-time NBA Champion
If you want to create and be a visionary, you're probably going to be working with technology in some way.
Karlie Kloss
Model and Founder, Kode with Klossy Scholarship
Code is going to continue to play a major role in defining our future. I think it’s crucial that young women learn to code as early as possible to ensure that we as young women have a voice and a stake in what the world looks like.
Ashton Kutcher
Actor
I think every field can benefit from computer science and does benefit from computer science. So I really believe that coding should be part of the core curriculum in every school around the world.
Octavia Spencer
Actress
In just one hour, you can take the first step in teaching yourself how to program with a computer and the first step to changing your life and the world.
Snoop Dogg
Rapper, Singer-songwriter & Actor
support tha american dream n make coding available to EVERYONE!!
Enrique Iglesias
Singer-songwriter & Actor
Programming is important. Learn how you can help get it into schools.
Mario Armstrong
Digital Lifestyle Expert & TV Host, NBC, CNN/HLN, NPR
Kids who understand code are at the highest level of literacy in the 21st century. This will give all kids the tools to move from consumers to creators, enabling them for huge success.
Russell Okung
NFL offensive tackle
Computer science is becoming more and more of a factor in our world, in our economy, so there's no better time than now to take advantage of it.
Ne-Yo
Musician and Producer
Creativity plus coding equals magic — the kind of magic that can change the world.
Neymar
Brazilian professional footballer
The winners of tomorrow will be the creators.
will.i.am
Musician and Entrepreneur
We all depend on technology to communicate, to bank, and none of us know how to read and write code. It's important for these kids, right now, starting at 8 years old, to read and write code.
Chris Bosh
NBA All-Star, Miami Heat
Coding is very important when you think about the future, where everything is going. With more phones and tablets and computers being made, and more people having access to every thing and information being shared, I think it's very important to be able to learn the language of coding and programming.
Technology and Business Experts
Bill Gates
Co-Chairman, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Co-Founder, Microsoft
Learning to write programs stretches your mind, and helps you think better, creates a way of thinking about things that I think is helpful in all domains.
Sheryl Sandberg
Chief Operating Officer, Facebook
An understanding of computer science is becoming increasingly essential in today’s world. Our national competitiveness depends upon our ability to educate our children—and that includes our girls—in this critical field.
Michael Bloomberg
Co-founder of Bloomberg L.P. and former Mayor of New York City
We salute the coders, designers, and programmers already hard at work at their desks, and we encourage every student who can't decide whether to take that computer science class to give it a try. New York City’s economic future depends on it, and while we're already giving thousands of our students the opportunity to learn how to code, much more can and should be done.
Ravi Kumar S.
President, Infosys Ltd. & Chairperson, Infosys Foundation USA
With STEM occupations growing at double the rate as others, it’s critical that we ensure students are introduced to computer science at an early age. Infosys Foundation USA is investing in advancing CS education in K-12 public schools across the US to prepare our young learners for careers in the digital future.
Satya Nadella
CEO, Microsoft
Computer science empowers students to create the world of tomorrow.
Arianna Huffington
Founder, The Huffington Post
Learning to code is useful no matter what your career ambitions are.
Jack Dorsey
Creator, Twitter and Founder & CEO, Square
I think that great programming is not all that dissimilar to great art. Once you start thinking in concepts of programming it makes you a better person...as does learning a foreign language, as does learning math, as does learning how to read.
Marc Benioff
Chairman & CEO, Salesforce
Learning to code at a young age opened my eyes to the incredibly exciting world of technology and entrepreneurship. Our youth deserve the opportunity to learn the skills that will enable them to succeed in our connected world.
Mark Zuckerberg
Founder, Facebook
Our policy at Facebook is literally to hire as many talented engineers as we can find. There just aren't enough people who are trained and have these skills today.
Tim Cook
CEO, Apple
We believe that coding should be a required language in all schools.
Eric Schmidt
Former Executive Chairman, Google
For most people on Earth, the digital revolution hasn't even started yet. Within the next 10 years, all that will change. Let's get the whole world coding!
Marc Andreessen
Co-Founder & General Partner, Andreessen Horowitz
Learning to code is the single best thing anyone can do to get the most out of the amazing future in front of us.
Richard Branson
Founder, Virgin Group
Whether we're fighting climate change or going to space, everything is moved forward by computers, and we don't have enough people who can code. Teaching young people to code early on can help build skills and confidence and energize the classroom with learning-by-doing opportunities. I learned how to fly a hot air balloon when I was 30,000 feet up and my life was in the balance: you can learn skills at any age but why wait when we can teach everyone to code now!
Todd Park
Former U.S. Chief Technology Officer
Technology and computers are very much at the core of our economy going forward. To be prepared for the demands of the 21st century—and to take advantage of its opportunities—it is essential that more of our students today learn basic computer programming skills, no matter what field of work they want to pursue.
Susan Wojcicki
CEO, YouTube
Learning to code makes kids feel empowered, creative, and confident. If we want our young women to retain these traits into adulthood, a great option is to expose them to computer programming in their youth.
Marissa Mayer
Former CEO, Yahoo!
You can be good at technology and like fashion and art. You can be good at technology and be a jock. You can be good at technology and be a mom. You can do it your way, on your terms.
Tim Berners Lee
Inventor, World Wide Web
I'm so excited to see the launch of Hour of Code in the UK, in this, the Web's 25th birthday year. Learning to code gives you a completely new perspective when you look at a computer. Before, you think of it as an appliance -- like a fridge -- accepting what it can do. After, you know that you can code that computer to do anything you can imagine it doing. That's a massive change ... and a massive challenge!
Steve Ballmer
Former CEO, Microsoft
Computer programming is the single best professional opportunity in the world. We need more Americans in the field. Let’s go!
Jeff Wilke
Former CEO Worldwide Consumer, Amazon.com
Coders change the world. They build new, amazing things faster than ever before. Anyone with imagination can learn to write code.
Reid Hoffman
Former Executive Chairman & Co-Founder, LinkedIn
One of the most important skills any entrepreneur should learn is to program a computer. This is a critical skill if you want to start a tech startup, but a basic knowledge of code is useful even in traditional fields, because software is changing everything.
Ron Conway
Silicon Valley Angel Investor
Coders are the life blood of innovation. Code.org will help ensure that our students learn this essential talent.
Drew Houston
Founder & CEO, Dropbox
Software touches all of these different things you use, and tech companies are revolutionizing all different areas of the world...from how we shop to how farming works, all these things that aren't technical are being turned upside down by software. So being able to play in that universe really makes a difference.
Fred Wilson
Managing Partner & Co-Founder, Union Square Ventures
People often ask me what they should do if they "aren't technical". I tell them to "get technical". And a great way to do that is to learn software engineering and computer science. Sadly, we don't have enough opportunities for people to do that. Code.org hopes to change that and I enthusiastically support their efforts to do so.
Mitch Kapor
Founder, Lotus Development Corporation and Partner, Kapor Capital
We need people from all walks of life to learn to code. Control your destiny, help your family, your community and your country.
Anne Wojcicki
CEO & Founder, 23andMe
All students should have the opportunity to learn how to program. Computer science is the basis for modern day creativity and expression. The computer programmers of tomorrow will revolutionize medicine.
Brad Smith
President & Chief Legal Officer, Microsoft
We need the generation that has grown up with computing devices to lead the way in coding—to start small but dream big, to have fun, to start businesses, to improve people’s lives, and change the world!
Max Levchin
Co-Founder, Paypal
Learning to code will be a huge booster for your future, no matter what your professional plans may be. Learning to code will also make you extremely cool!
Dara Khosrowshahi
CEO, Uber
Programmers are our artists... It's a profound sense of power and satisfaction to have your work affect so many, so quickly, across the globe.
Anousheh Ansari
Co-Founder & Chairwoman, Prodea Systems
Whether your dream is to start a business or to be an astronaut, a background in technology can help - it certainly helped me realize my dreams. We need more of tomorrow's women to learn to code.
Dean Kamen
Founder, FIRST
There are way more exciting careers out there for people that have developed the muscle hanging between their ears than for all the sports and the entertainers combined. Learning to code is one of the fastest ways students can learn the skills they need for the 21st century.
Elena Silenok
Founder, Clothia
Creating things with your hands, or creating code, creating programs, are just different ways to express creativity.
Dick Costolo
Former CEO, Twitter
If you can program a computer, you can achieve your dreams. A computer doesn't care about your family background, your gender, just that you know how to code. But we're only teaching it in a small handful of schools, why?
Tim O'Reilly
Founder, O'Reilly Media
Programming is how we talk to the machines that are increasingly woven into our lives. If you aren't a programmer, you're like one of the unlettered people of the Middle Ages who were told what to think by the literate priesthood. We had a Renaissance when more people could read and write; we'll have another one when everyone programs.
Mithra Irani Ramaley
Chief People Officer, City Year
In many of our inner-cities, talented students aren't exposed to the right opportunities to help them unlock the potential that all children share. Learning to code can help these students leapfrog traditional boundaries, ensuring that all children have access to the opportunities that can drive our economic success as a nation.
Steve Case
Co-Founder, America Online
Computer programming is a skill that more Americans need to learn. At a time when our country is suffering from unemployment, whether you want to be an entrepreneur and start a business, or you're just worried about having a job when you graduate, learning basic computer programming is the best way to do either.
Gabe Newell
Founder & President, Valve
The programmers of tomorrow are the wizards of the future. You're going to look like you have magic powers compared to everybody else.
Lucy Sanders
CEO & Co-Founder, National Center for Women & Information Technology
Computing lets people express their creativity and unlock solutions, and code is computing's universal language. All young people, including girls, deserve to be fluent in the language of the future.
Brad Feld
Co-Founder & Managing Director, Foundry Group
Computer science needs to be part of the core curriculum - like algebra, biology, physics, or chemistry. We need all schools to teach it, not just 10%.
Jeff Skoll
Founder, Participant Media
Coding gives you the basis to understand the world of today and control the world of tomorrow. There are few more rewarding experiences one can have.
Yishan Wong
Former CEO, Reddit
One hundred years ago, people were faced with the choice of learning to read or remaining illiterate laborers who would be left behind as have-nots in a rapidly modernizing world. In the coming century, being able to command a world that will be thoroughly computerized will set apart those who can live successfully in the future from those who will be utterly left behind.
Rob Glaser
Founder, RealNetworks
Learning how to code and program computers when I was a kid was one of the best choices I made growing up. By writing code, I learned how to bring my dreams to life, how to budget, and how to build stuff. Whatever path you choose in life—being an artist, an engineer, a lawyer, a teacher, or even a politician, you will give yourself a huge leg up if you learn how to code.
Mark Pincus
Co-Founder, Zynga
Every student deserves the opportunity to learn computer programming. Coding can unlock creativity and open doors for an entire generation of American students. We need more coders -- not just in the tech industry, but in every industry.
Mark Surman
Executive Director, Mozilla Foundation
Code has become the 4th literacy. Everyone needs to know how our digital world works, not just engineers.
Vanessa Hurst
Founder & CEO, CodeMontage
I think if someone had told me that software is really about humanity, that it's really about helping people by using computer technology, it would have changed my outlook a lot earlier.
Gina Bianchini
Founder & CEO, Mightybell
I was fortunate to begin coding in 4th grade. While I took a different path into political science and a fascination with how organizations and communities work, understanding how logic translates to code has changed the course of my professional life. I'm extremely grateful for the exposure and opportunity.
Douglas Rushkoff
Author, Program or Be Programmed
In the emerging, highly programmed landscape ahead, you will either create the software or you will be the software. It’s really that simple: Program, or be programmed. Choose the former, and you gain access to the control panel of civilization. Choose the latter, and it could be the last real choice you get to make.
Jason Hirschorn
Former Chief Digital Officer, MTV and President, Sling Media
Learning to code, just a little, helped me immensely in my career. I can converse and create with the rising leaders of the next generation, the coders themselves. Computers touch almost every aspect of our current and future life. Any society that plans ahead for its future citizens must teach computer programming at all levels of education.
Peter Denning
Former President, Association of Computing Machinery
Learning to speak the language of information gives you the power to transform the world.
Jamie Dimon
Chairman & CEO, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
In a world where technology drives our industries, the financial sector is no different. Having bright, talented, creative minds developing innovative technology solutions for our businesses just makes sense. It’s good for them, and it’s good for business.
Rodrigo Arboleda Halaby
Chairman & CEO, One Laptop Per Child
Our entire philosophy at OLPC is based on children learning to write code at very early ages. We follow the principles developed by Seymour Papert, our Learning director for more than 32 years, inventor of the LOGO programming language, the basis of the Constructionist approach of Learning-How-To-Learn. Regardless of future activities, children that write code are better prepared to face the challenges of creating wealth in the XXI Century, that of producing Patents, Intellectual Property...
Mary Barra
Chairman and CEO, General Motors
A car today can have tens of millions of lines of code. As engineers, scientists and inventors, we get to imagine what's next, and then make it happen.
John Fallon
Former CEO, Pearson
Not being able to express yourself is frustrating. Yet, if we don't encourage young people to grasp the basics of coding language, we are setting them up for that kind of frustration. And the world can't afford that - Code.org predicts that by 2020 there will be a shortfall of more than one million computer programmers in America alone. So I’m encouraged by any initiative that gives young people the skills they need to create, build, and be competitive in the 21st century workforce.
Education and Science Leaders
Malala Yousafzai
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Every girl deserves to take part in creating the technology that will change our world, and change who runs it.
Salman Khan
Founder, Khan Academy
To prepare humanity for the next 100 years, we need more of our children to learn computer programming skills, regardless of their future profession. Along with reading and writing, the ability to program is going to define what an educated person is.
Randi Weingarten
President, American Federation of Teachers
Computers have and continue to change the world around us, and programmers continue to be essential. But I know first hand from studying FORTRAN that many of us get intimidated by it and we shouldn't be. Computer programming has become far more accessible to teach and learn, and our country needs more students to learn it.
Leland Melvin
NASA Education Administrator and retired astronaut
Computers play an increasingly larger role in all fields of science; they're helping us explore outer-space and our solar system. Whether you want to become a doctor or an astronaut, it would help to learn the basics of computer programming.
John Hennessy
Former President, Stanford University
Learning to program is exciting: it's stimulating, fun, develops new ways of thinking, and in a very short time you can build programs that will impress your friends and family! Discovering the joy of programming was the spark that started my professional life and impressed the teenage beauty who, 40 years later, is still the love of my life!
Larry Corey
Former President, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Computers are an increasingly essential part of understanding cancer and developing new therapies. Knowledge of computer programming is almost as important as knowledge of anatomy when it comes to medical research or clinical care.
Wendy Kopp
Founder, Teach For America
Ensuring that our nation's urban and rural children have the chance to become proficient in computer science is a sure way to set them on a trajectory to great career options. We need to do this to close the digital divide and level the playing field.
Dennis Van Roekel
Former President, National Education Association
Learning to code unlocks creativity and builds confidence in students regardless of age, gender, or race. Computer programming can also be a teaching tool for other subjects, from physics to French. With today's technology, learning to code is more fun and more accessible than ever, and America's teachers welcome it into our schools and classrooms.
Michael Cohen
President, Achieve.org
As we think about preparing our children for college and careers in a hyper-connected, technology driven world there is no question that computer science is more important than ever before, that’s why more students in K-12 should be exposed to computer science.
Louise Waters
Superintendent & CEO, Leadership Public Schools
Coding is a path up for urban youth—a right now job that makes college possible—a future vision that inspires.
Esther Wojcicki
Vice Chair, Creative Commons Board of Directors
All students in the 21st century need to have the opportunity to learn coding starting in elementary school. It is exciting for kids and introduces them to thinking skills that are critical for the digital age and that promote the study of computer science.
Harry Lewis
Former Dean, Harvard College
The most popular class at Harvard today is Intro to Computer Programming, because computers are helping in almost every other field of study and research - to search for a cure for cancer, to understand the origins of ancient languages, etc. We need more schools to offer computer programming; it's a skill that will empower the next generation in almost any field. Learning to code is easy, fun, and a good thing to learn young.
Dr. Lee Hood
Inventor, Modern DNA Sequencing and Recipient, National Medal of Science
To deal with the "deluge of big data" requires the pioneering of new analytical tools, both computational and mathematical. Computer scientists have become essential as part of cross-disciplinary teams of researchers who tackle some of the most challenging issues in science today.
Maria Klawe
President, Harvey Mudd College
Coding is today’s language of creativity. All our children deserve a chance to become creators instead consumers of computer science.
Jan Cuny
Program Director, National Science Foundation
All of today’s kids will need—along with reading, writing, and arithmetic—a basic understanding of computation and the role that it plays across a wide range of disciplines. Coding is engaging and empowering. It’s a necessary 21st Century skill.
Jim Clark
President & CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Research shows that out-of-school programs are very effective in stimulating interest in STEM-related careers. With the support of our innovative technology partners, Boys & Girls Clubs are teaching talented kids how to make technology—rather than just consume it—and prepare youth for successful 21st century careers.
Dr. John Deasy
Former Superintendent, Los Angeles Unified School District
Students who study computer science unlock a world of opportunities for themselves.
Chris Stephenson
Computer Science Education Program Manager, Google
We consider it critical that students be able to read and write and understand math, biology, chemistry and physics. To be a well-educated citizen in today’s computing-intensive world, students must have a deeper understanding of the fundamentals of computing as well.
Nicholas Negroponte
Founder & Chairman Emeritus, MIT Media Lab
Programming allows you to think about thinking, and while debugging you learn learning.
Hilary Mason
Founder, Fast Forward Labs and Data Scientist in Residence, Accel
I believe technology should give us superpowers. Everyone should have the opportunity to learn to think, analyze, and create with technology.
Richard Barth
CEO, KIPP Foundation
In the last 30 years, computers have changed the course of humanity. Learning basic computer programming skills can help 21st century students regardless of their future career.
Jane Margolis
Senior Researcher & Author, UCLA
We must work diligently to democratize computer science learning so that no group is denied access to this fundamental knowledge. Not only is this an issue of civil rights, but computer science as a field desperately needs diverse and multiple perspectives.
Arne Duncan
Former Secretary of Education
To compete in a global market, our students need high quality STEM education including computer science skills such as coding.
Ed Lazowska
Computer Science & Engineering, University of Washington
Are you creative? Do you love problem solving? Is teamwork a strength? Do you want to have the power to change the world? If "yes" to all of these, then computer science - programming - is for you!
Mehran Sahami
Associate Chair of Education & Director of Educational Affairs, Computer Science, Stanford
Learning to code is tremendously empowering. It lets you go from just being a consumer of technology to being a producer of it. When you make that transformation, you realize that rather than settling for what someone else tells you is possible, you have the power to create whole new technological possibilities.
Tony Smith
Former Superintendent, Oakland Unified Schools
Technology is not a separate discipline that can be considered in isolation from other aspects of society; it's interwoven with every aspect of our existence. Learning to code is a pathway to full participation in the modern workforce and in public life. Providing every student with the opportunity to develop coding skills is not supplemental or elective, it's an essential part of our work to create opportunity, eliminate inequity, and prepare students for success in school, success in career, and success in life.
Dr. Alan Goodwin
Former Principal, Walt Whitman High School
In the 21st century, learning to program computers is one of the most valuable skills we can teach our young children, no matter what career they choose.
Bill Goodwyn
Chief Revenue Officer & EVP Business Development & Partnerships at CuriosityStream
At Discovery Education, our mission is to prepare students for tomorrow's world, and Computer Science knowledge and skills can open doors to opportunities for students as they enter college and careers. In this digital age, coding is among those most critical skills needed to compete in the new global workforce.
Politicians
Barack Obama
Former President of the United States
If we want America to stay on the cutting edge, we need young Americans to master the tools and technology that will change the way we do just about everything.
Justin Trudeau
Prime Minister, Canada
Every job we're going to do in the future will rely on technology and be benefited if you are powerful users of the technology that surrounds us.
John Thune
U.S. Senator, South Dakota
Whether our children want to become farmers, doctors, teachers, or entrepreneurs, it’ll be easier for them to achieve their dreams in the digital age if they have some background in computer science. We need our children to learn 21st century skills for a 21st century world, and coding teaches them the creativity and problem-solving skills that are necessary for success.
Cathy McMorris Rodgers
U.S. Representative, Washington State
As the foundation of America’s robust technology industry, computer science drives advancements in health care, aerospace, financial services, national defense, retail and so many other industries both at home and abroad. Young people should be exposed to computer science in our schools so they have the opportunity to learn, innovate, and develop new advancements to promote the future of technology.
Cory Booker
U.S. Senator, New Jersey
Computer programming is quickly becoming an essential career skill. Learning to code is a fantastic opportunity equalizer - if you're good at it, it can help you achieve your dreams.
Bill Clinton
Former President of the United States
At a time when people are saying "I want a good job - I got out of college and I couldnt find one," every single year in America there is a standing demand for 120,000 people who are training in computer science.
Al Gore
Former Vice President of the United States
Our civilization is experiencing unprecedented changes across many realms, largely due to the rapid advancement of information technology. The ability to code and understand the power of computing is crucial to success in today's hyper-connected world.
Ron Wyden
U.S. Senator, Oregon
One of the best ways to prosper in the 21st century economy is to understand the language it’s written in. Every student in America should have the opportunity to learn how to code.
John Hickenlooper
U.S. Senator and former Governor, Colorado
There's no question that computers are changing the world around us. To help prepare our children for a successful future, no matter what career they pursue, they need to learn basic computer programming skills.
Jay Inslee
Governor, State of Washington
There’s a spirit of innovation in Washington State that's driven world class advances in aerospace, IT, biotech, health and agriculture. But we're falling behind in meeting the workforce needs of today’s economy. To remain at the forefront of the innovation economy, we must prepare our kids for today’s jobs and the jobs of the future. Computer programming is one example of just such an opportunity.
Enda Kenny
Former Taoiseach, Ireland
Learning to code is learning to create and innovate. We want our young people, who have such enormous talent, to acquire this skill, so that they will become the trailblazers who will shape and change our future.
Todd Young
U.S. Senator, Indiana
A background in computer science provides a strong foundation for nearly any career path in any industry in the 21st century economy.
Marco Rubio
U.S. Senator, Florida
Computer programmers are in great demand by American businesses, across the tech sector, banking, entertainment, you name it. These are some of the highest-paying jobs, but there are not enough graduates to fill these opportunities.
Suzan DelBene
U.S. Representative, Washington State
Technology is changing our world and driving our economy. We need to make sure our children have the skills necessary to innovate and compete in the 21st century. Exposure to computer science and basic programming empowers students and spurs creativity, which can unlock countless opportunities for their futures.
Michael Honda
Former U.S. Representative, California
Students, parents, teachers, and policymakers will benefit greatly by recognizing the foundational importance of coding and computer science in our education curricula.
James McGovern
U.S. Representative, Massachusetts
We have witnessed astonishing advancements in computer technology just in our lifetimes. Preparing every student with a sound foundation in computer programming—whatever their chosen career path—will help them create the advancements of the future.
Tony Cardenas
U.S. Representative, California
The tech industry is quickly expanding and adding jobs to the U.S. economy. We need a workforce trained with the computer science and coding skills that fuel this expansion, so we can keep these exciting jobs here.
Thomas Petri
Former U.S. Representative, Wisconsin
It’s clear that our economy depends on talented professionals who are educated in computer science and technology. I encourage more Americans to push the limits of innovation by studying these subjects.
Ben Ray Luján
U.S. Senator, New Mexico
It is essential that students learn the language of code, the same way they learn to read and write. If we are to remain economically competitive and have a highly skilled workforce, access to computer science curricula and coding instruction must be a priority. With the potential for expansion and innovation as technology continues to become one of the most critical pieces of our infrastructure, this sector holds the promise of great opportunity for those who have the necessary training and knowledge.
Mark Takano
U.S. Representative, California
By learning to design, code or program at an early age, America's students can help usher in a technological revolution that we can only imagine. Harnessing their creativity in new and innovative ways will further solidify America's position as the nation with the greatest technology sector and I support making computer programming courses a part of every school's core curriculum.
