Let us help write the rules that will govern us
In Caracas, a generation of technology entrepreneurs is asking a foundational question about governance in the digital age: who should write the rules for systems they understand better than anyone? Venezuela's compressed journey into digital life—accelerated by pandemic necessity rather than gradual adoption—has left millions dependent on services that operate beyond coherent legal frameworks. The tech sector's call for public-private collaboration in drafting AI, cybersecurity, and e-commerce legislation is less a demand for power than a recognition that law, to be wise, must first be informed.
- Millions of Venezuelans now rely daily on ride-sharing apps, digital payments, and e-commerce platforms that exist in a legal vacuum, creating systemic vulnerability for users and businesses alike.
- What took other nations a decade to absorb digitally, Venezuela compressed into months during the pandemic—leaving regulation stranded in an earlier era while technology raced ahead.
- Tech entrepreneurs are not asking to escape oversight; they are pressing the government for a seat at the drafting table, arguing that laws written without technical understanding risk being either toothless or suffocating.
- The stakes are concrete: without coordinated legislation, a ride-sharing driver operates under rules built for another world, and a small online business sells without clear legal protection.
- Venezuela's digital ecosystem is signaling readiness to grow responsibly—but whether that growth is shaped collaboratively or imposed from above remains an open and consequential question.
In Caracas, Venezuela's technology entrepreneurs are making a direct appeal to government: allow us to help write the rules that will govern us. As ride-sharing apps, e-commerce platforms, and artificial intelligence tools spread across the country, the legal frameworks meant to contain them remain fragmented. The tech sector wants formal participation in drafting new laws on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and online commerce.
Venezuela arrived late to the digital revolution, spending years on the margins while other nations built regulatory infrastructure around emerging technologies. Then the pandemic arrived and compressed what might have taken a decade into months. Venezuelans adopted digital payments, online shopping, and app-based services out of necessity. The infrastructure adapted rapidly. The law did not.
The result is a peculiar vulnerability: millions of people now depend on services operating in a regulatory vacuum. Data moves across networks without consolidated cybersecurity standards. Small businesses sell online without clear legal protections. The technology functions; the governance does not.
What entrepreneurs like mobility app founder Gómez are proposing is not deregulation but its opposite—a coherent legal architecture built through collaboration between government and the private sector, one that can accommodate innovation while protecting users and digital systems alike. Without that partnership, the sector risks either stagnation under heavy-handed rules written without technical understanding, or continued disorder as services outpace law.
Venezuela's situation is urgent precisely because of that compression. The country must now accelerate regulatory development to match the pace of adoption already achieved. The tech sector is signaling its readiness to do that work—not to avoid accountability, but to help build frameworks grounded in how technology actually functions. Whether the government receives that offer as opportunity or threat will shape whether Venezuela's digital future is constructed together or handed down from above.
In Caracas, Venezuela's technology entrepreneurs are making a straightforward case to the government: let us help write the rules that will govern us. As digital services proliferate across the country—ride-sharing apps, e-commerce platforms, artificial intelligence tools—the legal framework that should contain them remains fragmented and incomplete. The tech sector wants a seat at the table where new laws on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and online commerce are being drafted.
Gómez, who founded one of Venezuela's most significant mobility applications, frames the problem clearly. The country arrived late to the digital revolution. For years, while other nations were building regulatory infrastructure around emerging technologies, Venezuela lagged. But something shifted, particularly after the pandemic forced rapid adoption of digital services. What might have taken a decade elsewhere happened in months. Venezuelans embraced online shopping, digital payments, and app-based services with urgency born of necessity. The infrastructure adapted. The law did not.
This mismatch creates a peculiar vulnerability. Millions of Venezuelans now depend on technological services that operate in a regulatory vacuum. A ride-sharing driver uses an app governed by rules written for a different era. A small business sells online without clear legal protections. Data moves across networks without consolidated cybersecurity standards. The technology works. The governance does not.
What the entrepreneurs are proposing is not deregulation—it is the opposite. They want the government and private sector to work together to build a coherent legal architecture that can accommodate innovation while protecting users, businesses, and the integrity of digital systems. Gómez emphasizes that this collaboration is essential for orderly development of the technology ecosystem. Without it, the sector risks either stagnation through heavy-handed regulation written without technical understanding, or continued chaos as services outpace law.
Venezuela's situation is not unique, but it is urgent. The country compressed years of digital adoption into months. Now it must compress years of regulatory development into a similar timeframe, or risk falling further behind. The tech sector is signaling that it is ready to participate in that work—not to avoid regulation, but to help shape it in ways that reflect both the realities of how technology actually functions and the needs of a population that has already embraced it. Whether the government sees that offer as an opportunity or a threat will determine whether Venezuela's digital future is built collaboratively or imposed from above.
Notable Quotes
Entrepreneurs want to participate in developing new laws being discussed on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and related matters— Gómez, tech entrepreneur and mobility app founder
Public and private sector coordination is essential to guarantee orderly development of the technology ecosystem— Gómez
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Venezuela's tech sector feel it needs to be at the table for these laws? Aren't governments usually the ones who write regulations?
They are, but these entrepreneurs have something governments often lack—they understand how the technology actually works at scale. They've been running these services in real time, seeing what breaks, what users need, what creates security risks.
So this is about preventing bad regulation?
Partly. But it's also about speed. Venezuela compressed a decade of digital adoption into a few years. The legal system can't move that fast alone. They're saying: let's do this together, or we'll all be playing catch-up forever.
What happens if the government ignores them?
Then you get regulations written by people who don't fully understand the technology. Rules that sound good on paper but don't work in practice. Services that have to choose between breaking the law or breaking their business model.
And the users?
They're the ones who suffer. They're already using these services. If regulation comes down badly, either the services disappear or they operate in the shadows. Either way, there's no protection.
Is this unique to Venezuela?
No, but Venezuela's timeline is compressed. Most countries had years to figure this out. Venezuela had months. That's why the urgency feels different.