Blog

What is algorithmic discrimination?

Discrimination by algorithms and Artificial Intelligence (AI): we give an overview of the topic.

Election year 2024

10 Questions about AI and elections

2024 is an important election year. While citizens all over the world get ready to cast their ballot, many people worry about AI: Are chatbots and fake images a threat to democracy? Can we still trust what we see online? We explain why the hype around AI and elections is somewhat overblown and which real risks we need to watch out for instead.

Press release

The Council of Europe’s Convention on AI: No free ride for tech companies and security authorities!

The Convention on AI is intended to be the first legally binding international agreement on AI. The final round of negotiations will take place in Strasbourg starting 11 March 2024. The members of the Council of Europe (including Switzerland and the EU member states) and non-members such as the US, Japan and Canada will also be sitting around the negotiating table. AlgorithmWatch, over 90 civil society organizations, and prominent academics are calling on the negotiating states to regulate companies’ and national security authorities’ use of AI.

Press release

Europe’s Approach to AI regulation: Embracing Big Tech and Security Hardliners

Europe is about to adopt two major regulations on Artificial Intelligence: the EU’s AI Act and the Council of Europe’s Convention on AI. The Federal Council has already announced that it will base its own proposals for AI regulation on them. Yet, while both rulebooks were initially meant to turn the tables on Big Tech and to effectively protect people against governments' abuse of AI technology, interests of tech companies and governments' security hardliners may win out.

Social Media

AlgorithmWatch CH ceases activities on X, formally known as Twitter

Starting today, AlgorithmWatch ceases publication on X/Twitter. The decision follows the continuous and rapid disintegration of the social network since its new owner took over a year ago.

Press release

AI Act deal: Key safeguards and dangerous loopholes

After a negotiation marathon in the global spotlight, EU lawmakers closed a deal late Friday night on the AI Act, the EU’s law on regulating the development and use of Artificial Intelligence systems. The EU Parliament managed to introduce a number of key safeguards to improve the original draft text, but Member States still decided to leave people without protection in situations where they would need it most.

Help us fight injustice in hiring!

Donate your CV to fight together against automated discrimination in job application procedures!

AlgorithmWatch CH becomes funding partner of Mercator Foundation Switzerland

Within the framework of a three-year strategic grant, Mercator Foundation Switzerland supports the core activities of AlgorithmWatch CH as an advocacy organization and allows for a sustainable organizational development.

AlgorithmWatch CH in Council of Europe Expert Group on AI in public administration

The Committee on Legal Cooperation (CDCJ) of the Council of Europe has established a working group on the topic of administrative law and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Angela Mueller, Head of AlgorithmWatch CH and Head of our Policy & Advocacy team, contributes as an expert to the group.

A heartfelt thank you! Anna Mätzener is leaving us

Anna Mätzener is leaving AlgorithmWatch Switzerland in the fall.

Facebook’s gutting of CrowdTangle: a step backward for platform transparency

Facebook is quietly dismantling CrowdTangle, a tool that academics, watchdog organizations and journalists rely on to expose disinformation and other problematic content on the platform. The move contradicts the company’s commitments to give researchers better access to data.

Explained

Council of Europe creates rules for Artificial Intelligence

Not only the EU but also the Council of Europe – an international organization based in Strasbourg – is setting rules on Artificial Intelligence (AI). In this explainer on its Convention on AI, we show what this is all about, why it is relevant to you and what the next steps are.

Solidarity with Ukraine

As an organization that defends human rights and democracy, we, the team of AlgorithmWatch and AlgorithmWatch Switzerland, stand in solidarity with Ukraine, the Ukrainian population and all Russians who do not support this war.

ADM in the Public Sector: The Workshop

AlgorithmWatch Switzerland was invited to give a workshop as part of an event series on AI & Ethics organised and presented by Swiss Digital Initiative (SDI). Together with participants from various backgrounds, we explored how Artificial Intelligence (AI) could be applied to the public sector, where and in what forms such applications are already used and what questions should be asked when considering the use of AI in the public sector.

Let’s celebrate: One year AlgorithmWatch Switzerland!

Security tests on Swiss COVID certificate find 136 vulnerabilities, amid calls for further restrictions

The Swiss COVID certificate launched in June has undergone its first phase of internal and public security tests, and the results are in.

Swiss COVID-19 certificate system subjected to public security test and gradually implemented

Switzerland launched its own COVID-19 certificate system on June 7, both in paper and digital formats. Rollout will be gradual, and the system is expect to be fully functioning by the end of June.

Centralized check-in apps reignite debate around digital contact tracing in Switzerland

During the pandemic, the public as well as the private sector have worked on digital tools for contact tracing. Private companies developed a variety of check-in apps for venues such as restaurants, bars, and clubs. In contrast to the SwissCovid app, those check-in apps collected data through a centralized architecture. This form of data collection in combination with insufficient checks on the private companies' use of the data raises questions regarding citizens' privacy and data security.

Welcome to Switzerland, AlgorithmWatch!