Colleen
Hi, Alysa. How are you doing today?
Alysa
Hi. Recovering, but but good.
Colleen
We are both recovering, folks. We are week after. It's quite... It's literally Thursday, October 22. We are one week after the the US privacy summit and still reeling, reflecting, and just thinking all about what what a great day we had in San Francisco. It was incredible. So I can't believe it's over, actually. It was so much lead up.
Alysa
Oh my gosh. So fun though. So full. What a full full full day.
Colleen
It really was. So folks, if you're if you're new to tuning in, my name is Colleen Barry. I lead marketing at Ketch and this is the privacy huddle, our weekly podcast where we unpack what's going on in the world of data privacy. Spend time talking about best practices, tips, tricks, trends, and all sorts of thing related to this ever evolving data privacy landscape. So I am here with the one and only Alysa Hutnik, partner at Kelley Dry. And she and I co hosted last week the US Privacy Summit, our second annual event Francisco at Convene, a beautiful conference facility in the city, and thought we'd spend an episode just reflecting on how the event went, sharing with folks who've never attended what it was like, and and also trying to share some recaps. Of course, we know it's a busy conference season and not everybody can make it to every event. And hopefully next year, you'll be at the US privacy summit, but if you weren't, would love to share what we can since we did have so many great regular sessions and panels and things there. So, yeah, let's dive in. I think... I mean, Alysa, don't I know about you, but the first thing that that I was really reflecting on as the day started was that when we hosted the first annual event in 2025, I was terrified when 8AM came and registration opened that no one was gonna walk in the door. And this year, I was like, people are walking in. We're a known quantity. What is... What an exciting thing that is the second annual. Right? Did you feel better about that this year?
Alysa
I was so scared the first year. Terrified. I was definitely scared the first year because you you have so much anticipation and it was a new thing. This year though, how about it? Like that first elevator that came up was full and there was just people just kept coming coming out of the elevator.
Colleen
I know. No. I remember because the people at the downstairs front desk called my planner, and she raced over me and she said, it's 8AM. Are you allowed... Are we allowed to send people up? And I'm like, people are waiting for you. I just couldn't believe it. It was so exciting. So last year in 2025 at the first annual event, we had a 150 people. And this year, we counted, I think, 260 plus people came through the door, which is just so cool. And I have to say one of my favorite comments was I talked to a few people who said, you know, October is a busy month in privacy. We had the events in Seattle the week before, IAB and IAPP. We had US privacy summit this week. There's other things going on and a few people said they they could only travel one week and they picked US privacy summit, which is pretty cool.
Alysa
It's pretty awesome. And I mean, heard the same thing and I heard people say they were so happy that they went. Like, it lived up to their expectations. They really walked away feeling like it was such a meaningful, really good use of time. So that's like the ultimate ultimate feedback.
Colleen
It really is. And I think for folks that haven't had a chance to come yet, when we started this conference, we didn't wanna just create another privacy conference. Right? We thought there was a gap and wanted to add something new to the conference circuit. And I... Alysa, can you unpack? Because I love the way you describe it as, like, when I ask you how did we come up with the sessions, you're always like, I was selfish. I was selfish about it. So explain what you mean by that in terms of creating the content agenda.
Alysa
Oh, goodness. Okay. So I go to a lot of conferences and there's a lot of panels where I feel like we get some dense PowerPoint presentations or maybe the one zero one here is what the law is or here is the latest case. But many of us, we've already read that. We've already... We know that part. We really just wanna get right into the hard parts. Like, where is it messy? Where is it unclear? Where is... Yes. I know about that enforcement, but what was the net new thing that's actually... How do I take that away and operationalize it in my different set of facts, different environment? So I wanted this to be the nerd privacy conference, but still fun. So that the panels would really hit all of the substantive issues, but not only get into the substance, but try to make it actionable. Right? What is the practical? What is the takeaway that I can apply? And at the same time, this is a stressful area. I wanted it to be fun. I wanted to have it be community and people feel comfortable networking and talking with each other and just... Isn't that crazy? Like, relaxed at the same time there were talking and working through some hard stuff.
Colleen
Yeah. No. I think that's exactly right. And I and I love to, you know, when as we were going through all the prep sessions with the moderators and panelists kind of shaping things, you know, I heard you encourage them so many times, like, remember folks, it's go above one zero one. It's not... You know, of course, are beginners in the room and there are certainly conferences where you want us to be a very beginner oriented agenda, but we wanted to make sure people came away with real practical takeaways and you can't get to that if you stay at that surface one zero one level. Just not possible.
Alysa
Right. The other thing we did is I can have a short attention span, and so I didn't want kind of the hour long panels that are long. Even if it's really good content, I thought we had to prioritize. And so those panels had to be really focused and get right into it ASAP. And so that also allowed us to really, I think, cover a diverse set of topics all within a day without too much on any one particular topic.
Colleen
Yeah. I I agree with you. And and only in a couple of the sessions, I think it became tough to stick to that thirty, thirty five minute time box, like the teen privacy one sticks out, but that's just because, I mean, these days, you could probably spend an entire conference day in terms teen privacy. So those folks had an especially hard challenge. But I, in general, I think it was a great weeding out process because it really forced every moderator instead of panelists to say, okay. Well, what do we really want the audience to take away? We only have so much time. And it was kind of cool to even put the regulators in that box. Right? Like, you don't get a giant amount of time. So, like, what's meaningful? What can you give as key takeaways? I love that they were in the same kind of issue situation.
Alysa
Oh, yeah.
Colleen
Yeah. I loved it. So, of course, we have listeners that were not there. Let's let's talk a little bit about what people cover so everyone can get a little benefit from the takeaways. Just before this folks, Elise and I were reviewing just some of the early survey data for what what folks liked, didn't like to know, especially favorite sessions. And no surprise, far and away, the favorite sessions of folks in the day were the regulators. Right? And I think one thing we prioritize at this event is making sure that when we say there's a regulator session, it's not five to seven regulators all up there at once behind a table and they each get like a five minute sound bite. Right? It's deep dive sessions and so we had a few different ones. We had Laura Kehoe Hoffman and Sabrina Ross from Cal Privacy in a conversation with Alysa in the morning all about California enforcement. Then we also had a fireside with Stacy Schesser from California DOJ in the afternoon. We also had a non California regulator panel with regulators from Oregon and Colorado. And then we wrapped up the day with a session with Annie Chang from the FTC. And so those were four separate regulator sessions over the course of the day diving in with each one of them, and people loved it. I mean, I know there's a lot there, Alysa, but as you think back across those sessions, can you highlight some of the favorite takeaways you would give to the listener here?
Alysa
Yeah. Sure. So, you know, I think for many in the room who've never had to go through an investigation, that's just a scary concept, right, to to be investigated. And I think court audited as the case may be with California. And I thought that they they did a good job demystifying that and really emphasizing, look, this is about the facts. Your homework matters, but you need to tell your story and have your proof behind the story. And by the way, if you see opportunities to improve some practices, go ahead and do that. Tell us. That's a positive thing when we see you on your own proactively really making adjustments. I think there's no privacy program that is static, period. And so that's just a logical thing to do as anybody takes a closer look at any one particular area. You're probably gonna find some opportunities to improve. So I thought that was a theme that was just generally helpful, and I found that my experience that is true. I think it was also interesting. They each had somewhat distinct priority areas in terms of what they were most focused on. And that's also helpful because we're trying to figure out our heat map on what do the regulators care about the most. And there's so many things you can do and you have to do to comply, but what do they care about the most? And really hearing from each of the different, I would say, enforcement stakeholders that what what they were interested in. And I think from that, consumer privacy rights were just a big one and making sure that those rights literally from a to z are fulfilled. Sensitive data, not a surprise. We know that. Children, teen, all of the different new requirements related to that is just a sensitive demographic and online safety. That was a big thing. Maybe the final big theme, and we knew this, but I'm still gonna say it anyway. They talk and they talk more than we think they talk. And they are so focused on pooling resources or who has resources to go after one issue versus the other. So I just think the amplification of state enforcement with that mindset was, you know, pretty important takeaway.
Colleen
Yeah. I agree. And I think what I loved as well was Stacy Shester's deep dive on the opt out part. Right? Just talking so much about, don't care that I've been talking about it for six years, folks. We still see problems and you still need to shore this area up. Mean, I was emphatic about that.
Alysa
Oh, we went deep on opt outs. I mean, that was not gonna be a one liner that you... I mean, we went through the cases. And I think her point was, if you know who the person is, even if it's hard technically based on how you're set up now, that opting out based on who the person is, if you know them for business reasons, and she particularly used, if you're using information about somebody in a marketing context, you know who they are, which think the practical answer is if you know who they are in a pseudonymous state, you also have a compliance obligation to persist their opt out in an identity state. And so how do you make that work? And she said, that's essentially, like, that's not her problem to figure out. That's your problem. But it is their expectation that if you know who the consumer is, think no broadly, you have that obligation to to enforce that that opt out.
Colleen
Yeah. Absolutely. I think the other thing that was cool to see in the attendee feedback was, you know, we make a point in the agenda to prioritize the regular sessions, talk about key just really kinda gnarly issues that privacy leaders are dealing with today, like teen privacy and litigation. But then we also make a point to have at least a couple sessions that are not lawyers on the stage. Right? And so this year, those two sessions were one panel led by John Suarez Davis with chief marketing officers talking about how are we using data as marketers in this very AI centered and prioritizing prioritizing era and how does that affect how a marketing leader thinks about privacy. And then this other session on AI agents and how... What does consent and privacy look like in a world where AI agents are increasingly part of a person's experience online, of how a business wants to interact online. And so two kind of cool sessions where we didn't have lawyers on stage. We're talking about these areas kind of outside the the purview, and it was encouraging to see in the in the survey feedback that, you know, nobody was saying, you know, those didn't relate to me. It was the opposite. Right? It was like, that was cool. Have you thought about getting product management up there, product design up there? So I think exciting to see that the privacy stakeholders in the room wanna see more from their peers. Right?
Alysa
Right. Well, it's a help me help you. The more that you have a really good understanding of each point along the chain of events and those chain events are changing in real time, maybe faster than we're we're used to, that helps you be able to do your part that much better. And so I think in the AI discussion, you know, I read everything I can. I use different AI tools still to hear from those who are, like, literally right there at the forefront on where things are changing, what they're concerned about, how they're addressing that. I thought that was really helpful for me as a lawyer to take back and think about. And I'm looking at contract terms, and I'm looking at definitions, training models versus learning... Like, there was just some... Would just say some interesting word choices and how the industry, at least on the business side, was thinking through some of those terms. I thought that was really an ownership of outputs. I thought that was fascinating and really important content to learn. But I also loved with the CMOs, the help me help you on both sides. Right? The marketing folks, like, they wanna move fast. Yeah. What what information do they need to really... How can we empower them in a more effective way to then help legal and vice versa? Like, legal speak up. How how... What does marketing need to do in order to... Both sides. I think that always... That relationship always needs investment of time Oh, yeah. Where it's not transactional too. I mean, that was one of the themes. Like, get to know your people. Marketing folks get to know your lawyers, but not when you need something from them and vice versa so that you understand the person behind the counseling or behind the ask of the marketing fire drill that needs to happen.
Colleen
Yeah. Exactly. I love that conversation too. So, yeah, fascinating content on stage, folks. It was such a pleasure. If you want deep dives, we're definitely gonna be coming out with more kind of session by session blog content on ketch.com. So keep an eye on that. Follow us here on LinkedIn. Of course, we'll share more. What else can we share, Alysa, from the event? I think one of, if not the most viral things since last Thursday has to be this opt out lounge idea that we like flew by the seat of our pants created in a few weeks before the event because you were like, hey, Colleen. I have this idea and I actually... I don't even remember now. Where did you even get this idea? Did it just come to you in a dream or did... Were you talking to someone? How did you come up with this thought?
Alysa
As I said, this is the nerd privacy conference. So I want to do things the way that I would just love to to do things and so the idea came because you go to a conference, there's so many people. Sometimes it's a lot of people you don't know. There's a lot of talking. There's a lot of being at and that can be a sensory overload and sometimes you just need a minute. Right? You just need to take yourself out for a little bit and go right back in. And so we just wanted a space where people could, you know, recharge. Not have to talk, not have to be on. That was just like the loose concept, but then where you guys took it and ran with it, I cannot take credit for that.
Colleen
I'm telling you, I can't take credit either. I should take credit for probably almost killing the idea because you told me like three or four weeks before the event, and I'm not gonna lie to you, my first reaction was, ugh, I wish that wasn't such a good idea because now I have to do it. Like, that was literally my reaction. And I'm like, how am I gonna get this done? Who am I gonna call? But then I remembered at Ketch, I have this fabulous colleague, Elena, who's on our design team. And just as as kind of her side project, she loves exploring just mindfulness and meditation. And so she has such a passion project for this on side of her her job already which is a designer. So she's already a person with just such an aesthetic kind of way she looks at the world and so I mentioned this to her and it was like the creative sky opened and so she created this oasis filled with plants and a tea station and instruments to do these beautiful sound baths for people who needed breaks between sessions and it really did feel like an oasis. I'm still kind of blown away by the thing. So people clearly wanted it because it was popular. Right?
Alysa
Oh, it's popular. I... In fact, every conference should always have this. Like, there should be
Colleen
a minimum. Folks, I don't think you're gonna see Ketch at a conference without some kind of opt out lounge activation. I mean, it's... I already was like, Colleen, that's just gonna be the IAPP booth. Right? In DC, just an opt out lounge? And I was like, we'll see. We'll see. Still gotta sell software. No. Exactly. So... No. It's so fun. So... Yeah. I love that. And then, you know, for folks listening that maybe attended, you know, of course, we're always thinking about how to make the next year better. And I will say, I'm curious what you think, Alysa, if you agree with these. Think I two things on my mind for, like, how we can maybe keep improving are one, I think maybe we need more dedicated time for questions in these sessions. Right? Like, it was such a meaty day. We fit 10 sessions into the day, rapid fire, and I think the content was was great based on attendee feedback, but maybe we need some little built in q and a time. Right? What do you think? I don't know. I want a little more interaction. It's a tough balance, but I want it.
Alysa
Yeah. I think the interaction is really important. That's always a risk because what you don't wanna do is, okay. Who has questions? And then nobody has questions. You've allocated the time for that. But I think maybe even in small scale questions. Right? Like, grouping, like, different sections of the room that get to focus on an issue and and talk through a particular maybe category. So we're we're thinking about that, but certainly if there is feedback or strong views on what the set of engagement should be for that kind of thing, I would love to hear it.
Colleen
Yeah. Likewise. And I think in addition to the the questions, you know, we we definitely sensed a hunger for more more organized networking. Right? And I think that's a factor of going from one fifty to two fifty attendees. Right? We did the same kind of breaks and hang time, but when you add a 100 people, you're not gonna touch everybody. And it's it's still a small scale, but, like... Yeah. So folks, we're we're thinking about how do we add time for newcomers to say, and just more maybe organized time for people to get to know others in the space. So we'll see. Yeah. We'll see what the next year brings. But for those who joined us, mean, at least and I, I think I speak for both of us. We couldn't be more grateful that you're you're making this a stop on your fall privacy conference circuit. It's it's an honor and I and I think that something I feel passionate about certainly is that, you know, we happen to be the host. Right? Ketch and Kelley Dry and Wiss, but it's not a Ketch conference. It's not a Kelley Dry conference. It's the US privacy summit and we're trying to be a a meaningful resource for folks folks out there. Wouldn't you agree, Alysa?
Alysa
Yeah. I would agree. Although, one thing I will just add, part of the feedback from the surveys was Colleen, somebody thinks you should run for office. I'm just...
Colleen
Love it. So timely. Yeah. There's the open question and somebody said, can I vote for Colleen Barry in the midterms? So I love it. Well, you might... I mean, that's that's gotta be a viral LinkedIn post. So I can't resist that I'm a marketer. I mean, I... You might see that in a screenshot on my feed soon, but no, I love it. So much great feedback. Alysa and I are already thinking about what do we do next. Alysa, do you wanna tease anything for folks? What we're thinking? Is it US privacy summit next year? Is it something sooner? What do we have cooking?
Alysa
You know, my mindset in October is always like reflecting. Right? Like, what happened this year? What do I need to know? It's like we sprint to the end of the year. But come January, I'm already thinking of brand new year. We got a whole lot of stuff. We got twelve months. So I'm thinking a forward looking potential event late January could be could be timely.
Colleen
I think so too. Something for the East Coasters maybe? DC, we'll see, something like this.
Alysa
Yeah. Something. And I will just, in the meantime, do some some talking to the environmental patterns of not getting a snowmageddon line up with the conference. Just that.
Colleen
Please do whatever you can because DC wasn't quite ready for us last January. So, yeah, we have to figure that part out. Well, lovely catching up with you as always, Alysa. Thank you so much for everything over the last week. What what a whirlwind. It was so much fun.
Alysa
Much fun. Thanks Colleen.
Colleen
Absolutely. We'll talk soon and thanks all for listening.
