James Farrell
Latest from James Farrell
Amazon criticized for spying over AI cameras in its vans
Amazon.com Inc. is taking some heat after it was revealed that it has begun installing artificial intelligence cameras in its delivery vans. The reason for the cameras – designed by San Diego-based startup Netradyne – is to improve safety, so any mistakes that drivers make are recorded. If drivers get drowsy at the wheel, speed, ...
Apple reportedly closing a deal with Hyundai-Kia to build the first ‘Apple Car’
Apple Inc. is reportedly closing in on a deal to make a fully autonomous vehicle with Hyundai Motor Group and its affiliate Kia Corp. Reports of an Apple car, or iCar, go back to 2015, although it was first thought the vehicle would be semi-autonomous. Then in late 2019, it was reported that Apple had ...
Wikipedia introduces global code of conduct to combat harassment and misinformation
In an effort to make the website more reliable and a better place to work, the Wikimedia Foundation announced today that it has introduced a “first of its kind” global code of conduct. As the world’s largest online encyclopedia, the English version alone contains some 6,241,247 articles and receives on average 597 new articles every ...
Amid Apple privacy spat, Facebook will ask users to opt in to tracking for ‘better ads experience’
Facebook Inc. said today that it will start rolling out a new function for iPhone and iPad in which users will be asked to allow the company to track their activity in order to improve their ad experience. The move comes before Apple Inc.’s spring update which has rankled Facebook somewhat. In that update, users ...
In its first rulings, Facebook’s Oversight Board overturns four of five cases
Facebook Inc.’s Oversight Board has ruled that four of five cases where Facebook had taken down content should be reversed. Almost a year ago to the day, Facebook announced that it would soon start implementing a third-party review board to oversee its decisions regarding what it removes from the platform, although it wasn’t until December ...
Mark Zuckerberg says Facebook will cut back on News Feed political content
Facebook Inc. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said today that there’s too much political content on the platform and he has some ideas about how to address that. Zuckerberg brought the matter up when talking on the quarterly earnings call, saying that a top priority for 2021 was to lessen the amount of political fighting on ...
Twitter gives academics full access to its tweet archive
Twitter Inc. said today that it will grant academic researchers full access to its archive of tweets so they can better understand user behavior and what topics people discuss. Academics have been able for some years now to access some of the company’s archive, but Twitter said it hasn’t always been easy for researchers to ...
Twitter pilots a new misinformation fighting tool: Birdwatch
Twitter Inc. today announced the preliminary release of Birdwatch, its fact-checking function for users. The program, which is specifically designed to address specious information that appears on the platform, is available to only 1,000 users in the U.S. right now. Those users will be able to address information and tag it as misleading, adding more ...
Google investigating top AI ethicist after thousands of files downloaded and shared
It was only in December that Google LLC found itself the topic of controversy once again when it fired Dr. Mimnit Gebru, one of its leading artificial intelligence ethicists, and today a very similar story hit the news. The company said Gebru had given her superiors an ultimatum, which was to publish her paper or she’d ...
GitHub head of HR resigns after Jewish employee was fired for warning about Nazis among Capitol mob
Following the unnecessary firing of an employee over a comment about Nazis being among the people that invaded the U.S. Capitol this month, GitHub Inc. announced today that the head of human resources has “taken accountability” and resigned. The reason the employee in question was fired was a message he sent to his coworkers regarding ...