Facebook Ad Model Rethink; AI in Prisons; More Robots on Mars
Written while watching international chaos play out on TV
Please enjoy this strangely soothing image (Credit: Lance Ulanoff)
Facebook rethink
Don’t call it a retreat. Facebook is simply rethinking its ad model, the thing that generates billions in revenue each quarter, to target individuals less specifically. If you ask Facebook, this has nothing to do with Apple and its new privacy settings on iOS14 that have allowed millions to opt-out of tracking from all apps on the iPhone platform.
Facebook did say a while back that that change could hurt businesses operating on Facebook. It never said it could hurt Facebook, and maybe it hasn’t. But reports on this change make it sounds like a major adjustment (no more sharing personal data off device and differential privacy), the kind that must be a response to something. For me, it’s a reminder that Apple is the real powerbroker in tech matters, especially as it firmly establishes its privacy leadership position (only slightly undercut by the new Child Abuse Detection scheme [see below]).
Even if it’s not Apple, perhaps Facebook is facing up to looming Federal regulation or changing attitudes.
I did notice that some on Twitter asked if the average consumer even cares about this. How concerned are people outside the tech media bubble about ads that target interests they already share on social media? I think people are both concerned and confused by them. They have many questions about how these systems know what they want or are considering before anyone types anything into a computer or taps it out on their phone. If ads are less specific, those concerns might ease. However, less-targeted ads are unlikely to be as effective as those that appear to know exactly what you want. This leads to lower engagement and less revenue for Facebook and its partners.
This whole thing is still in the planning stages and could change significantly before consumers experience it (or don’t experience it).
Listening up
It’s no secret that justice isn’t equal in America. Studies have shown, for instance, that black men and women are incarcerated at five times the rate of white people. This statistic becomes even more concerning when you learn that U.S. prisons are considering using AI to monitor and transcribe inmate phone conversations.
While I’m generally a fan of artificial intelligence, I know that years of programming with inadvertent (or intentional) bias built-in has led to systems that do a terrible job of, for instance, accurately identifying black faces in a crowd and correctly transcribing black voices. The reasons behind this are straightforward: Machine Learning training usually reflected the ethnicity of the trainers and not a broader population.
For inmates, the use of this kind of automated technology could lead to misinterpretations that could adversely impact their time in jail.
I do get the benefit: Virtually all prison conversations are already monitored by live employees. This technology could save time and money. However, I’d suggest that the prison system work with researchers and develop better, more diversely trained, and, therefore, more accurate systems before unleashing this on prisoners.
Robots on mars
Boston Dynamics Spot robot is popping up in all sorts of places including factories and the dance floor. It may, though, end up 241 million miles away, on Mars, exploring caves.
NASA and researchers are currently exploring whether or not specially equipped Spot robots could be used to go where humans are unlikely to go (at least in the near future) to find signs of past life/civilizations/really any data that can help paint of picture of what Mars was like before it became a dusty, red orb.
Perhaps Spot can also help us find this missing core.
Apple Privacy saga
I spent part of last week covering Apple’s plans to scan uploaded iCloud Photo images for child abuse imagery. It’s an important plan, but one that has raised serious concerns among privacy hawks.
The week started with the rumor.
Then we got the confirmation and explanation.
Then we got a lot more explanation and maybe some damage control.
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