Greetings friends, and I hope all is well.
This will be the last newsletter of the summer, as a (much needed) break is in store. But, as mentioned, we will return fresh, vibrant, tanned, and so many more adjectives in September. I hope ye all manage to have a break yourselves.
You’ve probably all heard of the story about the couple caught on camera at a Coldplay concert. It obviously raises really problematic issues regarding the possibility of existing anonymously in public (a central component of the right to private life) and how the prevalence of facial recognition technology – including its use by the public – risks totally eroding that. This could have really devastating impacts on our ability to be ourselves, and to exist even slightly outside the status quo. I don’t think we’ve fully grappled with the long term implications. On that note, I am very pleased to announce that ‘Facial recognition surveillance: Policing and human rights in the age of AI’, co-authored with Pete Fussey, and published by OUP, is out now (for academics online, pre-order for 28 July). Book tours and beers to follow.
Very much in the naughty corner this week is the UK government’s plans to use AI to verify the age of migrants. Its one thing to use this tech for retail purposes (and that has its own issues) but the range of possible problems when applying this tech to immigration are vast. Off the top of my head: it would be totally based on correlation, and so no doubt brings about a host of potential discrimination issues, never mind problems with the existence (or not) of a scientific basis. This is where a human rights due diligence framework is so vital. Evidence-based analysis of potential benefits and potential harms. What a concept.
Google has apparently developed an AI tool that fills in missing words on Roman inscriptions. Which is cool. And which also, obviously, reminded me of this scene from the Life of Brian.
I’ll leave you this week with ‘Woman’ by Little Simz. Late to the game as always on this one, but really enjoyed this album this week.
Have a lovely summer, lovely people.
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Hindustan Times, Foundations of military AI and India’s strategic imperative – Hindustan Times
BBC, UK to use facial recognition AI to stop adult migrants posing as children – BBC News
BBC, Notting Hill Carnival: Police to use facial recognition tech
The Wall Street Journal, White House Prepares Executive Order Targeting ‘Woke AI’
The Hill, Astronomer CEO resigns after Coldplay video goes viral
The HIll, 5 things to know as the GENIUS Act becomes law
The HIll, Meta upgrades Instagram safety features for teens
Electronic Frontier Foundation, EFF and 80 Organizations Call on EU Policymakers to Preserve Net Neutrality in the Digital Networks Act
Privacy International, Do early steps into agentic AI respect our needs for privacy and security?
Reuters, EU’s AI Act faces delay with lawmakers deadlocked after crunch meeting
Bloomberg, Microsoft Investors Prod Company Over Work With Israeli Military
Washington Post, U.S. airports are using facial recognition identity checks
WIRED, Watch Does Airport Security Even Work? | Incognito Mode
WIRED, This AI Warps Live Video in Real Time
Financial Times, Chatbots in the classroom: how AI is reshaping higher education
Financial Times, Can finance put a stop to AI data mining?
The Register, Meta declines to abide by voluntary EU AI safety guidelines
The Conversation, AI in universities: How large language models are transforming research
The Guardian, OpenAI signs deal with UK to find government uses for its models
Financial Times, The ‘hallucinations’ that haunt AI: why chatbots struggle to tell the truth
The Register, Google’s open lakehouse: the foundation for enterprise AI data
The Guardian, Google develops AI tool that fills missing words in Roman inscriptions
Financial Times, Powering UK’s AI growth plan risks burning political capital
MIT Tech Review, A major AI training data set contains millions of examples of personal data
Access Now, Internet Shutdowns: Endangered Communities, Silenced Stories
The Hindu, AI models with systemic risks given pointers on how to comply with EU AI rules
MyNews, China’s Guangxi province launches ‘AI super league’ to nurture Asean-facing start-ups
Hindustan Times, Bridging the gap – Why students need greater skill sets in the age of AI – Hindustan Times
The Hindu, UN chief urges AI companies to focus on renewable energy – The Hindu
Video:
Scott Hanselman, Tech Promised Everything. Did it deliver? (haven’t had a chance to watch yet, but it popped up on bluesky and sounded interesting)
Blogs
Just Security, Rethinking the Global AI Race
EJIL:Talk!, Brussels Mirage: The EU AI Act’s Subtle Shine across International Borders
DLA Piper, European Union publishes its General-Purpose AI Code of Practice
NRF LLP, Texas Responsible Artificial Intelligence Governance Act