Google Left in ‘Terrible Bind’ by Pulling AI Feature After Right-Wing Backlash
Google tried using a technical fix to reduce bias in a feature that generates realistic-looking images of people. Instead, it set off a new diversity firestorm.
The Google DeepMind website on a smartphone.
Photographer: Gabby Jones/BloombergFebruary was shaping up to be a banner month for Google’s ambitious artificial intelligence strategy. The company rebranded its chatbot as Gemini and released two major product upgrades to better compete with rivals on all sides in the high-stakes AI arms race. In the midst of all that, Google also began allowing Gemini users to generate realistic-looking images of people.
Not many noticed the feature at first. Other companies like OpenAI already offer tools that let users quickly make images of people that can then be used for marketing, art and brainstorming creative ideas. Like other AI products, though, these image-generators run the risk of perpetuating biases based on the data they’ve been fed in the development process. Ask for a nurse and some AI services are more likely to show a woman; ask for a chief executive and you’ll often see a man.