Tech Rivals Lay Down Arms for Youth Coding The "Hour of Code" kickoff. It's somewhat rare for Amazon, Microsoft, Apple and Google to agree on something, so it's noteworthy when they pause for a kumbaya moment over something like educating youth programmers. On Monday, all four of the companies threw their support behind an initiative, "Hour of Code," through which the tech industry is seeking to promote computer programming to K-12 students. The push, backed by Code.org, a nonprofit organization, encourages schools, parents and teachers to introduce students to programming during Computer Science Education Week, which runs Dec. 9 to 15. The initiative is one of many efforts by the tech industry to reduce the shortfall of engineering talent that most of them say is a serious problem for their businesses. Few schools in the United States teach computer programming, even though some of the most abundant high-paying career opportunities are in the field. To help with the problem, Microsoft has even started a program through which it sends its own employees into schools to teach programming. Hadi Partovi, a technology investor and adviser who founded Code.org, said youth programming was one subject on which all major technology companies could agree. "This is the first time that all these companies and founders have joined forces together," Mr. Partovi said. Although they may compete in their day-to-day business, what's clear to every technologist in America is we need to do a better job educating our youth for the demands of the 21st century.