When it comes to artificial intelligence, it seems that Google and ethics do not mix.
The tech giant is in the news again this week after Margaret Mitchell, who worked until Friday as the leader of Google’s Ethical AI team, announced her dismissal. via Twitter. Mitchell’s non-ceremonial canning follows on the heels of Google’s leading AI ethicist Dr. Timnit Gebru fired in December.
“I’m fired,” Mitchell wrote in her brief statement.
We reached out to Google to confirm that Mitchell was fired on Friday and to ask why she was fired. We did not receive an immediate response.
It is especially important that the departure of Mitchell and Drs. Use very related. Mitchell praised Google’s actions against Dr. Used in public criticized. they call “something very wrong.”
Gday world.
Going to week 5 to be locked out of work after seeing something very wrong, worked by my superiors @timnitGebru.
Exhausted by the endless decline to save face for the Upper Crust in technology at the expense of minorities’ lifelong careers.– MMitchell (@mmitchell_ai) 15 February 2021
Mitchell further wrote that the company locked her out of her work accounts after her criticism of Google in January. According to Axios, Google did this after discovering that Mitchell used ‘automated scripts’ to use examples of discrimination against Dr. Used to search.
I’m worried about @timnitGebru Google’s firing and its relationship to sexism and discrimination. I wanted to share the email I wrote to Google Press the day my access was cut off. Https://t.co/O7JPlqJW8L
– MMitchell (@mmitchell_ai) 5 February 2021
Dr. Gebru’s dismissal on Dec. 2 follows a message she sent about the lack of women hired at Google, in addition to an internal debate over one of her research articles.
Google confirmed Mitchell’s dismissal in a statement to TechCrunch.
SEE ALSO: Google paid a lot of cash to Android creator Andy Rubin after allegations of sexual misconduct
“After conducting a review of the manager’s conduct, we have confirmed that there are multiple violations of our code of conduct, as well as our security policies, which include filtering out confidential business sensitive documents and private data of other employees.”
Google has not always responded so strongly to alleged codes of conduct. In 2018, Google made news when the New York Times The company reportedly paid Andy Rubin, the creator of Android, about $ 90 million on its way out the door after allegations of sexual misconduct.