🚿 Cleaning drones and will Facebook reveal its algo?
🐒 A spy monkey robot project goes awry
The Good
In the realm of AI for good, there are projects that are suppose to be good for humanity, ecosystems, climate change, social change, and the like. And then there are things that I just find delightful, like a drone that can clean outdoor spaces.
This particular use is suppose to be disinfecting for COVID-19, which is likely just a high-tech bit of hygiene theater. But! The idea of using drones to clean is a good one, and we will likely see more examples of it soon.
The Bad
Facebook, tired of being held responsible for its shitty decisions, created a “Supreme Court” of 20 folks who now get to make hard choices about what post or posters should stay or go, taking the heat off the company. They are currently looking at whether Trump will ever get his account back, among other issues.
The group is suppose to have totally autonomy and whatever they decide, goes. And that might be well and fine for issues even as big as an ex-president, but now they are saying they will “at some point” ask to see Facebook’s algorithm. One of the members explained their frustration:
What happens if you want to make something less viral? What happens if you want to put up an interstitial? What happens if, without commenting on any high-profile current cases, you didn’t want to ban someone for life but wanted to put them in a ‘sin bin’ so that if they misbehave again you can chuck them off?
All good questions, especially the “sin bin” part, a phrase I intend to use from here on out. I would also like some insight into this algo (as do a lot of others!) and wish them well. I have a sinking suspicion that the autonomy the board has is suddenly going to have some cavets, with Zuck saying “I will do anything for the Facebook Supreme Court, but I won’t do that.”
More News
I’m absolutely furious at whoever thought it was a good idea to make a robot spy monkey and traumatize real monkeys who thought it was a dead baby monkey.
Longform piece on AI-powered license plate readers, coming to a neighborhood watch and police department near you.
The annual AI Index is out, if you’re interested in the latest trends in the AI universe.
Facebook is considering adding face rec tech to the “smart” glasses they are developing.
A look at how fast food chains are turning to automation, face rec tech, and robotics so you can have it your way.
How dumb are YouTube’s algos? So dumb it censored a chess video that talked about “white” and “black” and “attacks,” but sure, tell me again how AI is going to solve moderation.
Got some dissent you want to bury? Why not turn to AI-generated faces to add noise to protest-related search results.
The Tom Cruise deepfaker speaks!
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Until drones can wash my dirty windows,
Jackie