#publicsphere (18 results)

At the moment, we primarily work in German language. Find here more German content on our work on ADM in the public sphere.

Foto von Christian Lue auf Unsplash

Position, 4 July 2023

Battle in Strasbourg: Civil society fights for safeguards against AI harms

With negotiations on a Convention on Artificial Intelligence (AI) within the Council of Europe entering a crucial stage, a joint statement by AlgorithmWatch and ten other civil society organizations reminds negotiating states of their mandate : to protect human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. To adhere to this mandate and to counter both narrow state interest and companies’ lobbying, the voice of civil society must be listened to.

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Project, 12 June 2023

Atlas of Automation

To detect benefit fraud, measure work performance, predict a person's creditworthiness or show us personalised content online - algorithms and so-called "artificial intelligence" are shaping our everyday lives today. Where, by whom and for what purpose these algorithmic systems are used, however, is largely a black box. With the Atlas of Automation, AlgorithmWatch CH now sheds light on the darkness.

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Foto von Brett Jordan auf Unsplash

Position, 25 April 2023

The EU now has the means to rein in large platforms. It should start with Twitter.

The European Commission today announced the platforms that will have to comply with the strictest rules the Digital Services Act imposes on companies. Twitter has to be on top of its list in enforcing these rules.

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Position, 7 March 2023

France: the new law on the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games threatens human rights

France proposed a new law on the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games (projet de loi relatif aux jeux Olympiques et Paralympiques de 2024) which would legitimize the use of invasive algorithm-driven video surveillance under the pretext of “securing big events”. This new French law would create a legal basis for scanning public spaces to detect specific suspicious events.

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Khari Slaughter for AlgorithmWatch, CC BY 4.0

, 3 February 2023

What does TikTok know about you? Data donations deliver answers!

Companies like Facebook, Instagram, Google, and TikTok often know about the harmful effects of their algorithmic systems and yet continue to prevent independent research on them. Data donations like DataSkop are one of the few ways to investigate opaque algorithms.

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Adrian Grycuk | CC BY-SA 3.0

Position, 18 October 2022

Civil society responds to the Council of Europe Treaty on AI

Together with other observer civil society organizations in the Committee on AI in the Council of Europe, AlgorithmWatch Switzerland stresses the importance of that legal framework on AI based on human rights, democracy, and the rule of law that is currently being elaborated in Strasbourg. We urge the EU not to delay this process in light of the negotiations on its own AI Act currently ongoing in Brussels. The two frameworks have a different purpose and should complement rather than copy-paste each other.

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"Privacy" by g4ll4is | CC BY-SA 2.0

Position, 9 June 2022

Submission to the UN report on the right to privacy in the digital age

When the right to privacy is violated, it is often the case that other human rights are also negatively impacted. In our submission, we list key areas of concerns on the way automated decision-making systems (ADMs) affect people’s basic rights.

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Stanford University Libraries via Public Domain Review

Blog, 20 May 2022

Council of Europe creates rules for Artificial Intelligence

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

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Position, 13 April 2022

EU’s AI Act and DSA negotiations in full swing

Crucial digital policy bills are being negotiated in Brussels right now. These bills also have a relevance for Switzerland. While the European Parliament and the European Council are still busy shaping the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), the Digital Services Act (DSA) is approaching the finish line. AlgorithmWatch has been intensely working on proposals regarding both regulations. We have clear demands what should flow into them so that they genuinely protect our fundamental rights as well as the public interest.

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Mathias P.R. Reding | Unsplash

Position, 3 March 2022

Human rights and activities of tech companies: Governments must act

Discrimination and violations of rights to equal treatment by the law – these are among the risks to human rights posed by the development and use of algorithmic systems by technology companies. In our submission to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) we argue that states have a duty to protect citizens from these risks.

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