Most philosophical contemplation involving the notions of racism and artificial intelligence usually takes the form of disputes on whether or not an AI turned sentient should be discriminated against just because it isn't human. Still, it appears that machines might just be the first to racially discriminate between people, especially considering the interesting video that pointed out the fact that HP recognition software can't seem to even detect dark skinned faces, even close up.
The video clearly demonstrates that the man's camera could not even notice his presence even though it had no trouble following his white-skinned co-worker. The video is rather long and clearly shows that the problem is not a minor glitch, since the camera had no problems when following and zooming on the black man's white colleague. The webcam's owner points out the potential racism while making light of the actual problem, also admitted to being interested in a response on HP's part.
A response he got. However, it seems that, so far, HP has only been able to offer the assurance that the company is working on the problem.
"Everything we do is focused on ensuring that we provide a high-quality experience for all our customers, who are ethnically diverse and live and work around the world. That's why when issues surface, we take them seriously and work hard to understand the root causes,” said an official HP representative in a blog post.
It seems that the issue rests with the software itself and is caused by the way the actual algorithms might not be appropriate for all kinds of skin tones.
“We are working with our partners to learn more. The technology we use is built on standard algorithms that measure the difference in intensity of contrast between the eyes and the upper cheek and nose. We believe that the camera might have difficulty ‘seeing’ contrast in conditions where there is insufficient foreground lighting. While we work on this, take a look here for more information on the impact of lighting on facial tracking software, and how to optimize your webcam experience."
The video about the webcam as half-blind as Justice may be seen below.
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