Susan J. Fowler

Susan J. Fowler is the former Uber engineer whose blog post ignited a worldwide conversation on the #MeToo movement. She was named a Person of the Year by TIME and the Financial Times, who wrote that Fowler’s actions hold “the potential to improve the way women are treated at work permanently.” Now, Fowler’s hotly anticipated memoir, Whistleblower, just hit shelves. In her uplifting talks, she shows how regular people can spark positive change on a global scale.

At 26, the engineer, physicist, and writer wrote a meticulous blog post detailing the harassment—and the systemic denial of it—that she faced at Uber. Fowler’s powerful words led to a wave of change in attitudes toward workplace conduct in Silicon Valley and corporate America. It soon spread to Hollywood, politics, profesional sports, academia, and beyond; empowering countless women and men to share their stories, as well as providing the much-needed spark for companies to re-evaluate their policies, practices, and priorities. She received the 2018 Webby Awards, where she was named Person of the Year.

Now, the full story will be illuminated in her brand new memoir, "Whistleblower: My Journey to Silicon Valley and Fight for Justice at Uber." Named one of the Most Anticipated Books of 2020 by Forbes, Vogue, Cosmopolitan and more, "Whistleblower" details Fowler’s incredible true story of taking on one of the biggest startups in Silicon Valley history—and the consequences. Her courage to take on a huge company didn’t come out of nowhere: Whistleblower also explores her life leading up to this landmark case—a life defined by extraordinary determination, a refusal to accept injustice, and the strength to fight for what is right.

It’s not just her experience with the #MeToo movement that informs her thoughtful talks. She grew up in rural poverty, one of seven children in an Arizona town of 600 people. Receiving virtually no formal schooling, she had to fight for everything she wanted—especially her education. With unbelievable grit, Fowler gained admission into Arizona State University, at the age of 18, partly by providing a list of books she had read at her local library. She then earned degrees in physics and philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania. “I used to think that my unconventional upbringing was a weakness,” she says. “But over the past few years I’ve learned to see it as one of my greatest strengths.” And Fowler brings more than her impressive intellect to everything she does, she also has a remarkable brand of moral purpose, clarity of mind, and tenacious courage.

Named a Person of the Year by TIME for being one of the Silence Breakers, Fowler’s coming forward has helped create a societal culture where, instead of denying there’s a problem, companies are embracing the solutions to it, trying to create systems that treat employees fairly, and services consumers can feel good about using. In 2018, Fowler was named Technology Editor of the New York Times’ Opinion section, where she leads the Op-Ed coverage on the ways technology is shaping our culture, economy, relationships, politics, and play.

In her career in STEM so far, Fowler has designed electronics that were used at CERN, worked on the search for the Higgs boson, worked at three start-ups, served as editor-in-chief at Increment (“The New Yorker of Silicon Valley”); and published her first book, on software architecture, at the age of 25.

Fowler is a member of Vanity Fair’s New Establishment List, Fortune’s 40 Under 40, and the Bloomberg 50. A movie about her life is currently in the works.