NEW YORK: IBM CEO Arvind Krishna has announced the company is getting out of the facial recognition business.
Krishna made the announcement as he called on the US Congress to enact reforms to advance racial justice and combat systemic racism.
The decision for IBM to get out of the facial recognition business comes amid criticisms of the technology, employed by multiple companies, for exhibiting racial and gender bias.
“IBM firmly opposes and will not condone uses of any technology, including facial recognition technology offered by other vendors, for mass surveillance, racial profiling, violations of basic human rights and freedoms, or any purpose which is not consistent with our values and Principles of Trust and Transparency,” wrote Krishna in the letter to Congress.
“We believe now is the time to begin a national dialogue on whether and how facial recognition technology should be employed by domestic law enforcement agencies.”
