Technology Shabbat
Technology Shabbat, or Tech Shabbat, is a 24-hour break from all screens—phones, computers, tablets, and TV. The term was created in 2010 by Tiffany Shlain and Ken Goldberg and is modeled after the Jewish Shabbat. It grew out of the National Day of Unplugging, organized by the Reboot group.
The idea is to unplug for a full day so people can be present with family, nature, or themselves. Shlain first tried unplugging in 2008 when her father was sick, and she then joined the first National Day of Unplugging with Goldberg. She even turned a poem she wrote for the event into a film.
On Tech Shabbat, the 24-hour blackout often runs from Friday night to Saturday night. People use the time to read, walk, explore, be outdoors, or write with pen and paper.
The concept appears in several of Shlain’s films, such as Connected, Yelp: With Apologies to Allen Ginsberg's Howl, Technology Shabbats, A Case For Dreaming, and Making of a Mensch.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 05:14 (CET).