The algorithm used to do it for us, now we do it for the algorithm: Platforms seek data on what people think good memories are. One user tells us how she constructs an end-of-year Recap Reel on Instagram.
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To train machine learning models, tech companies are hiring a Germany-based service provider to buy selfies and pictures of ID cards from underpaid gig workers, whose rights are often disregarded.
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Spain announced the first national agency for the supervision of Artificial Intelligence. In its current shape, the plan is very industry-friendly and leaves little space to civil society.
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Police officers in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania predict the likelihood of a future incident of domestic violence using ODARA, a Canadian tool with unproven reliability. It helps cooperation with social workers, but does not work all the time.
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In August, the Finnish delivery service Wolt published its first “algorithmic transparency report”. We asked three couriers about their experiences. They don't always match the report’s contents.
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Zvook is a system that detects incoming missiles and drones using audio sensors and Artificial Intelligence. It was created in part by the people behind Respeecher, the company infamous for cloning the voices of Star Wars characters.
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In the United States, automated systems purge voters rolls and verify signatures. They sometimes discard valid votes, especially in historically marginalized communities. Such systems are unlikely to be as widespread in the European Union.
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The open-source social network gained millions of new users following Twitter’s takeover. While some of its features could improve the quality of public discourse, disadvantaged communities might be excluded.
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Alternative social network Mastodon, which has no algorithmic timeline and a decentralized structure, is rapidly gaining steam. But the regulatory framework, which was built for billion-dollar companies, could dampen its growth.
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Recommender systems, such as a social network’s news feed or a streaming service’s recommendations, are notoriously difficult to audit. Despite high hurdles, practitioners from journalism and academia are pushing forward.
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