Whether we’re talking about ChatGPT, AI lawyers or the chatbot that lets you chat with Tupac in real time – generative AI is taking the world by storm. But these systems are also reproducing many of the same biases we see in the real world – from sexist performance reviews to racist images. Leading AI ethicist Dr Timnit Gebru, known for her groundbreaking research on the risks of large language models, was forced forced out of her position as the co-head of Google’s AI ethics team after raising issues of
The SANS Institute has partnered with Google to launch the SANS Cloud Diversity Academy (SCDA) as the White House releases it long-anticipated National Cybersecurity Strategy. SANS is the world’s largest provider of cybersecurity training and certifications. Now, through the SCDA, it is empowering Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), women, and other underrepresented groups to launch their cybersecurity careers in a matter of months. The Academy will provide training in SANS courses and associated GIAC certifications and hands-on labs, focusing on cloud security. “As more businesses adopt cloud technology,
Black-owned startup Equipt is using the power of the community to help tech workers bounce back from layoffs. In 2021, Olajide “Jide” Osan and Hubert Dagbo co-founded Equipt as a talent marketplace using upskilling events to connect job seekers with potential employers. After first meeting at Lehigh University in 2008, Dagbo and Osan found mentors who used their skills and networks to find career opportunities in finance and tech, respectively. The pair reconnected during the Covid-19 pandemic and launched Equipt, using technology to replicate the path they followed years prior.
Last week, Minority-Serving Institutions received over $175 million to improve access to affordable, reliable, and high-speed internet. The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) recently announced it awarded more than $175 million to 61 colleges and universities as part of the Connecting Minority Communities (CMC) Pilot Program. The funding comes from the Internet for All initiative which aims to ensure all Americans can access affordable, reliable, high-speed internet. The initiative includes funds for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI), Minority Serving Institutions, and
Brooklyn-based climate tech company BlocPower has raised $150 million to drive its mission of making America’s buildings greener. The round included over $24 million of Series B corporate equity led by VoLo Earth Ventures and $130 million of debt financing led by Goldman Sachs. Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, Credit Suisse, Builders Vision, and New York State Ventures were among the investors. Making buildings greener 10% of all US greenhouse gas emissions come from burning fossil fuels in homes and buildings for heating and cooking. Traditional heating and cooking appliances that run
Particles for Justice, a diverse group of physicists, are calling on their colleagues to support Black Studies and LGBTQ+ visibility. The group, who also organized the 2020 Strike For Black Lives, is now calling on academics and professional societies to take a visible and active stand against the “authoritarian” attacks on Black and queer studies. The group includes participle physicist and feminist scholar Chanda Prescod-Weinstein as well as physicists Tim M.P. Tait (University of California, Irvine) and Nausheen Shah (Wayne State University). In a statement, the group criticized the “manufactured moral
To offer an in-depth, data-backed look into the unique Black experience in the tech industry, the Info-Tech Research Group has published The State of Black Professionals in Tech report. “Diversity in tech is not a new topic, and it’s not a secret that technology organizations struggle to attract and retain Black employees,” Allison Straker and Ugbad Farah, Info-Tech research directors and leads on the report, said in a statement. “Current events have once again brought diversity to the forefront for many organizations. The pandemic, along with preparations for a recession and
Google for Startups is accepting applications for its Black Founders Funds in the US, Europe, Africa, and Brazil, and its Latino Founders Fund in the US. This year also marks the first time Google for Startups has opened the US funds to the public. In previous years, Google reportedly selected US businesses solely through referrals. Less than 0.5% of funding goes to Black-led startups, even though 77% of them are revenue-generating and create an average of 5.4 jobs each. First announced in June 2020, the Black Founders Fund was launched as
Black-owned startup Robin AI has raised $10.5 million to transform the legal industry with its AI-driven contract editor. What is Robin AI? Robin AI is the brainchild of former Clifford Chance lawyer Richard Robinson and former machine learning research scientist James Clough. The startup trained its machine learning model on data from 4.5 million legal documents with input from in-house lawyers to create a ‘lawyer bot’ that can draft and edit legal contracts. On average, users can draft and negotiate contracts up to 80% faster, saving up to 75% on
If you’ve been considering switching jobs, experts say now might be the best time to take the leap. Despite the cooling labor market, a new survey from ZipRecruiter has found that job seekers remain in the driver’s seat. New hires managed to secure better benefits and higher salaries than those hired earlier in 2022, thanks to a competitive hiring market and pay transparency laws in places like New York, Colorado, and California. The survey found that two-thirds of people who switched jobs received a pay increase of 11% or more,
