Meta’s AI-powered image generator has recently been scrutinized for its difficulty in generating images of interracial couples and friends. Meta’s AI Fails To Generate Interracial Couples The AI tool, introduced in December, revealed its shortcomings when CNN tested its ability to create pictures of people from different racial backgrounds. The requests for images of interracial relationships consistently resulted in the AI producing images of same-race couples or friends, contradicting the diversity seen in real-world relationships. For instance, a request for a Black woman with a white husband yielded images of Black couples. This pattern was broken
Nourish + Bloom, the first Black-owned autonomous grocery store in the US, is reshaping how communities access fresh food after Shark Tank investors declined them. Founded by Jilea and Jamie Hemmings in 2022, Nourish + Bloom aims to reduce the nation’s food deserts, making eating healthy and convenient. Nourish + Bloom Nourish + Bloom is reportedly the first 100% AI-powered supermarket to be open for business 24/7. The store currently offers a range of essentials, from produce to toiletries, and a deli for prepared foods. However, unlike traditional stores, Nourish + Bloom operates
A 14-year-old passionate about technology, Sophie has developed an innovative AI chatbot focused on mental health. Mental Health meets AI Unlike the usual narratives surrounding AI, such as privacy invasion and fake news, Sophie’s AI chatbot offers hope to users. Her mother, Samantha, in a TikTok video, revealed how Sophie’s creation counters negative self-talk and mental health issues with positive affirmations and exercises in self-awareness and boundary setting. This chatbot’s introduction goes, “Humans often struggle on focusing on the present … and comparing each other to other people who we think are better, when really we should focus
AI’s inability to detect signs of depression in social media posts by Black Americans was revealed in a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). This disparity raises concerns about the implications of using AI in healthcare, especially when these models lack data from diverse racial and ethnic groups. The Study The study, conducted by researchers from Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine and its School of Engineering and Applied Science, employed an “off the shelf” AI tool to analyze language in posts from 868 volunteers. These participants, comprising equal
Beyoncé’s latest album, “Cowboy Carter,” holds a bold statement in the ongoing dialogue about the role of AI in music production. Beyoncé’s Use Of Traditional Methods Beyoncé emphasized her commitment to authenticity in music creation in a rare public comment. She clearly preferred real instruments and traditional methods over artificial intelligence and digital manipulation. “The more I see the world evolving the more I felt a deeper connection to purity,” Beyoncé said in a press release. “With AI and digital filters and programming, I wanted to go back to real instruments, and I used very old ones…
April Fools’ Day is known for its jokes, but in the tech world, it can be challenging to tell what’s real and what’s not, even on regular days. A lot is happening in tech, from ingenious deceits to blatant scams. We’ve got stories about everything from a Black tech pro who made up a fake assistant to earn more respect to the wrong use of AI in politics and huge money tricks in the crypto world. Here are 9 POCIT stories to check out this April Fools’ Day. 1. The
Pa Edrissa Manjang, a Black Uber Eats driver in Oxfordshire, UK, received a payout after facial-recognition checks prevented him from accessing the app, the BBC reported. Racially Discriminatory Facial Recognition Checks Initially, when Manjang began working for Uber Eats in November 2019, the Microsoft-powered app didn’t frequently request facial verification. However, as the app’s AI-driven checks increased, Manjang faced an unexpected hurdle. Manjang said he was asked to take photos of himself “multiple times a day” because the system failed to recognize him. He told Uber Eats: “Your algorithm, by the looks of things, is racist.”
Google and Apple are potentially joining forces to integrate Google’s chatbot technology, Gemini, into every iPhone amid controversies surrounding its promotion of diversity. Google’s Gemini The two tech giants are discussing licensing parts of Google’s Gemini bot for the iPhone’s built-in AI tools, such as its Siri assistant. Bloomberg reported that Google’s shares surged 6.6% following the news. The move comes after Gemini was criticized for generating images of historical figures that inaccurately represented their genders and ethnicities. The backlash prompted Google to pause the image generation tool. The potential partnership also raises questions of privacy
Leigh Higginbotham Butler has a pioneering AI platform and network for Black women, Akina. Akina, which means “strong family bond” in Swahili, originated from a personal need to create a safe space for discussions and support among Black mothers. It has since evolved into a Community-as-a-Service (CaaS) app and platform that leverages culturally competent AI and machine learning technology. From A Social Network To A Movement Akina was initially started 2020 as a social media platform for Black mothers. “It came about in the aftermath of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmuad
Atlanta-based agency Chroma Creators is using artificial intelligence to deliver branding and marketing that is crafted by AI but inspired by Black culture. Chroma Creators Chroma Creators founder, CEO, and chief creative officer Octavia Warren is known for her success with multicultural branding and marketing agency Creative Juice. With over a decade of debunking stereotypes, Warren is now using the power of artificial intelligence to reshape how brands connect with Black audiences. “I remember a time when you could not find a stock photo of a black hand holding an iPhone,” said Warren in
