Google has released a new photograph ap that automatically labels things based on facial or image recognition. But one customer found that a photo of two black people was labeled “Gorillas.” Ooopsie. Now Google is apologizing.
The Verge found that some folks are none too happy about the new Google program…
Google Photos, y'all fucked up. My friend's not a gorilla. pic.twitter.com/SMkMCsNVX4
— diri noir avec banan (@jackyalcine) June 29, 2015
Google came under fire this week after its new Photos app categorized photos in one of the most racist ways possible. On June 28th, computer programmer Jacky Alciné found that the feature kept tagging pictures of him and his girlfriend as “gorillas.” He tweeted at Google asking what kind of sample images the company had used that would allow such a terrible mistake to happen.
Google’s chief social architect Yonatan Zunger responded quickly, apologizing for the feature.
As part of the new Photos app, users’ photos can be tagged and arranged automatically based on objects in the photos. For instance, pictures of skyscrapers are all arranged in an album appropriately labeled “skyscrapers.” The tag feature learns as it receives more data, refining its method for recognizing and categorizing objects. The feature is flawed, but categorization isn’t the only step in photography that companies have had trouble with.
The politically correct Google has egg on its face with this one!