IBM Corp. Chief Executive Officer Arvind Krishna is withdrawing his company from the general-purpose facial recognition market over concerns that the technology is being used to promote discrimination and racial injustice.

In a letter addressed to the U.S. Congress today, Krishna said that IBM “firmly opposes and will not condone uses of any technology, including facial recognition, for mass surveillance, racial profiling, violations of basic human rights and freedoms or any other purposes not consistent with our values and Principles of Trust and Transparency.”

The CEO also called for a “national dialogue” on how and when facial recognition tech should be used by law enforcement agencies.

Facial recognition technology has been controversial for years, with its use heavily criticized by both privacy advocates and lawmakers. Some U.S. cities have already banned municipal use of the technology, but it’s nevertheless becoming increasingly pervasive in public places such as airports and shopping malls. Moreover, numerous police departments in the U.S. have adopted the technology.

But the effectiveness of facial recognition technology has been called into question, with some critics saying it has very low accuracy rates with regards to women and minority groups. They further argue that facial recognition is becoming and “inescapable and invasive” method of surveillance.

Indeed, even some companies that sell the technology have raised concerns. Clearview AI Inc., which sells facial recognition software that lets users identify people by comparing their faces with photos posted on the internet, last month announced it would no longer sell the technology to private companies, citing fears that it could be used for commercial purposes.

IBM’s decision to abandon the facial recognition market is unlikely to harm the company, since the business did not generate any significant revenue from the market, CNBC reported. However, it’s a notable move given IBM’s size and prestige, and the fact that it counts the U.S. government as one of its major customers.

The decision shows us that IBM has one of the strongest ethical policies of any technology company, analyst Rob Enderle of the Enderle Group told SiliconANGLE. He said this strong ethical policy was also highlighted by the firm’s decision to shift its resources from more lucrative efforts to help fight the coronavirus when the COVID-19 pandemic first emerged.

“The current leadership recognizes that when the company loses track of what’s right, it almost always ends badly, and so if something appears wrong, they’ll avoid it,” Enderle said. “Ironically, over time, IBM has improved the technology behind its facial recognition software so that it’s no longer racially biased. Hence, the technology itself isn’t at fault, but it can still be misused.”

In his letter to Congress, Krishna said IBM had listened to the concerns of many constituencies, including some of its employees.

“Artificial Intelligence is a powerful tool that can help law enforcement keep citizens safe,” Krishna said. “But vendors and users of Al systems have a shared responsibility to ensure that Al is tested for bias, particularly when used in law enforcement, and that such bias testing is audited and reported.”

Image: Kimika Ying/Flickr