Google restructured its responsible AI teams in the wake of Timnit Gebru’s firing, which further angered the researcher and her supporters.
The ethical AI teams will now be under the supervision of Marian Croak, a black Google executive who is admitted to inventing the Voice over Internet Protocol.
Google announced her appointment in a blog post:
Now she’s taking on a new project: to ensure that Google develops artificial intelligence responsibly and that it has a positive impact. To do this, Marian has created a new expertise center on responsible AI within Google Research.
Sources told Bloomberg that Croak would report to Jeff AI, head of Google AI, whose involvement in Gebru’s departure was downplayed by members of her team.
Her retirement follows a dispute over a research article she co-authored with the author. Dean maintained that Gebru had resigned, but for all intents and purposes she was fired.
The reorganization of Google’s AI teams is aimed at suppressing the outage that is causing its termination, but it has already caused further outrage.
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Gebru tweeted that Google “trying to neutralize one black woman with another “while harassing, terrorizing and emphasizing my team.”
I will have a lot more to say about this later. But announcing a new organization by a black woman as if we were all interchangeable while harassing, terrorizing and enlightening my team and doing absolutely ZERO to acknowledge and correct the damage we have done goes beyond gas lighting . https://t.co/cMtHqCte4e
– Timnit Gebru (@timnitGebru) 18 February 2021
Technical workers, diversity groups, and former colleagues also criticized the move.
Gebru’s supporters include former diversity recruiter Abril Christina Curley, who say she was fired from the firm because ‘they were tired of hearing me shout at them on their racist shit.’
Abil tweeted that Google “wants nothing more than to physically drop us and exhaust us to the point of breaking.”
Margaret Mitchell, who founded Google’s Ethical AI team – and is currently locked out of her corporate account to download Gebru – related material – found out through Bloomberg’s report on the reorganization.
… And that’s how I get it. I am so glad for all the trust they have rebuilt. It looks like I was completely wiped out and my team was taken. Https://t.co/1BTGOo5Wry
– MMitchell (@mmitchell_ai) 18 February 2021
Google may be hoping that the restructuring will undermine internal disagreement, but it has only angered Gebru’s supporters.
Published on February 18, 2021 – 21:43 UTC