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Sure, thy could

Companies could use Facebook pictures to discriminate against employees with genetic diseases using AI, scientists fear, after showing that algorithms can spot rare conditions.

Developers at US biotech company FDNA have developed a programme which outperforms humans at diagnosing genetic syndromes by looking at slight variations in face shape.

The face analysis programme, known as DeepGestalt, could in future assist the diagnosis of rare disorders such as Fragile X which brings a long narrow face and prominent ears, or angelman syndrome which is characterised by a prominent chin, deep set eyes, wide mouth.

And?

If it’s rational for people to so discriminate then they should. If it’s irrational, mere taste discrimination, then that’s costly to those who do it.

And? We all have to gouge our eyeballs out so that we don’t discriminate on the basis of melanin?

10 thoughts on “Sure, thy could”

  1. I doubt anyone with Angelman Rich syndrome could join the workforce or operate a Farcebook page by themselves. Those males with Fragile X syndrome would find both difficult and their employable skills would be strictly as unskilled manual labour, away from machinery.

  2. If it’s the owner hiring, then yes, he’s leaving money on the table by being picky about employees. But if it’s a middle-manager in a public company, only notionally answerable to shareholders, he (or she) can indulge their preferences as far as HR (also unanswerable) will let them get away with it.

  3. Companies could use Facebook to discriminate against employees with opinions the Hive disapproves of, scientists don’t fear at all.

  4. I’d rather be discriminated against before I go to the trouble of getting dolled up, travelling in our mickey mouse country and then getting rejected for something that bothers the hirer he could have filtered out at an early stage.

  5. “Companies could use Facebook pictures to discriminate against employees with genetic diseases using AI, scientists fear, after showing that algorithms can spot rare conditions”
    But properly ‘woke’ companies could use Facebook pictures to discriminate in favour of employees with genetic diseases, and thus benefit from all that lucrative diversity.

  6. Are we constantly told that we should employ blind recruitment where information is removed from resumes that might indicate race or gender
    Though HR weren’t amused when I pointed out the list of jobs and education could be quite revealing so what was the plan to anonymise those

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