In December, Google pushed out AI ethics researcher Timnit Gebru, sparking a response from the team calling for her to be reinstated at a better stage. As a substitute of doing that, Google announced Dr. Marian Croak because the chief of “accountable AI analysis,” and, in response to a report by Axios, instructed staff on Thursday it could alter insurance policies round variety and analysis. It adopted these strikes by firing Gebru’s former co-lead, AI ethics researcher Margaret Mitchell, who had reported her accounts remained suspended for weeks whereas the corporate investigated her.
In a statement, Google claimed Mitchell violated its code of conduct and safety insurance policies, “which included the exfiltration of confidential business-sensitive paperwork and personal knowledge of different staff.” Mitchell had expressed her concern about Gebru’s firing publicly, saying it created a “domino impact of trauma.”
Growing…