California’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has digitized 42 million car titles using blockchain technology to prevent fraud and streamline the title transfer process. In collaboration with tech company Oxhead Alpha on Ava Labs’ Avalanche blockchain, the DMV will enable California’s 39 million residents to claim their vehicle titles through a mobile app, the first initiative of its kind in the US.
John Wu, president of Ava Labs, explained that the blockchain will create a transparent and unalterable record of property ownership, reducing the need for in-person DMV visits and acting as a deterrent against lien fraud. California residents can expect to access their digital car titles early next year as the DMV develops the necessary app and infrastructure.
In addition to this project, Deloitte has partnered with Ava Labs to create a disaster recovery platform for the US government, streamlining disaster reimbursement applications to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The shift towards digitization, as seen with Michigan’s pension fund investing $6.6 million in a Bitcoin ETF, and Trump promoting US crypto leadership, indicates a growing interest in the benefits of blockchain technology across various sectors.
The integration of blockchain extends to autonomous vehicles as well, which have been making payments through this technology since 2019. With these advancements, more government sectors are likely to explore blockchain’s potential, reflecting a broader trend towards digital transformation.
Meta Platforms has agreed to a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas over allegations of illegally using facial-recognition technology to collect biometric data without consent. The case marks the largest settlement of its kind by any state. The lawsuit, initiated in 2022, accused Facebook of capturing biometric data from photos and videos uploaded by users through a ‘Tag Suggestions’ feature, which has since been discontinued.
Meta expressed satisfaction with the resolution and hinted at future business investments in Texas, including developing data centres. Despite the settlement, the company continues to deny any wrongdoing. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton emphasised the state’s dedication to holding the big tech companies accountable for privacy violations.
Why does it matter?
The settlement was reached in May, just before a state court trial began. Previously, Meta paid $650 million to settle a similar biometric privacy class action under Illinois law. Meanwhile, Google also faces a lawsuit in Texas for allegedly violating the state’s biometric privacy law.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has proposed a vision where AI bots assist content creators with audience engagement, aiming to free up their time for more crucial tasks. In an interview with internet personality Rowan Cheung, Zuckerberg discussed how these AI bots could capture the personalities and business objectives of creators, allowing fans to interact with them as if they were the creators themselves.
Zuckerberg’s optimism aligns with many in the tech industry who believe AI can significantly enhance the impact of individuals and organizations. However, there are concerns about whether creators, whose audiences value authenticity, will embrace generative AI. Meta’s initial rollout of AI-powered bots earlier this year faced issues, including bots making false claims and providing misleading information, raising questions about the technology’s reliability.
Meta claims improvements with its latest AI model, Llama 3.1, but challenges such as hallucinations and planning errors persist. Zuckerberg acknowledges the need to address these concerns and build trust with users. Despite these hurdles, Meta continues to focus on integrating AI into its platforms while also pursuing its Metaverse ambitions and competing in the tech space.
In a groundbreaking event, Kenza Layli, an AI-generated Moroccan influencer, has been crowned the first Miss AI. Layli, created by Myriam Bessa of the Phoenix AI agency, aims to bring diversity and inclusivity to the AI creator landscape. With nearly 200,000 Instagram followers and 45,000 on TikTok, Layli is entirely AI-generated, from her images to her captions and acceptance speech.
The inaugural Miss AI contest, organized by the influencer platform Fanvue, attracted entries from 1,500 AI programmers worldwide. Layli’s creator, Myriam Bessa, will receive $5,000, support on Fanvue, and a publicist to elevate Layli’s profile. Runners-up included AI contestants Lalina Valina from France and Olivia C from Portugal.
La modelo e influencer virtual marroquí Kenza Layli es la inteligencia artificial que obtuvo el primer lugar en el concurso Miss Universo AI 2024. pic.twitter.com/JdhyNSKy3R
Unlike earlier virtual influencers, these contestants were created solely using AI programs such as DALL·E 3, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion, with their speeches and posts generated by ChatGPT. Layli’s Instagram page features her fondness for the color red, motivational advice, and support for her national sports team.
Judges, including AI influencer Aitana Lopez and human pageantry historian Sally-Ann Fawcett, assessed contestants on looks, AI tool usage, and social media influence. Despite Layli’s unique representation, experts warn that AI beauty pageants may further homogenize beauty standards, reflecting existing biases in society.
Meta announced on Tuesday that it will begin removing more posts that target ‘Zionists’ when the term is used to refer to Jewish people and Israelis, rather than supporters of the political movement. This decision is based on the claim that the world can take on new meanings and become a proxy term for nationality. Meta categorises numerous ‘protected characteristics,’ including nationality, race, and religion.
Previously, Meta’s approach has treated the word ‘Zionist’ as a proxy for Jewish or Israeli people in two specific cases: when Zionists are compared to rats, reflecting antisemitic imagery, and when context clearly indicates that the word means ‘Jew’ or ‘Israeli.’ Now, Meta will remove content attacking ‘Zionists’ when it is not explicitly about the political movement and when it uses certain antisemitic stereotypes, dehumanises, denies the existence of, or threatens or calls for harm or intimidation of ‘Jews’ or ‘Israelis.’
The policy change has been praised by the World Jewish Congress. Its president, Ronald S. Lauder, stated, ‘By recognizing and addressing the misuse of the term ‘Zionist,’ Meta is taking a bold stand against those who seek to mask their hatred of Jews.’ Meta has previously reported significant decreases in hate speech on its platforms.
A recurring question during consultations was how to handle comparisons of Zionists to criminals. Meta does not allow content that compares “protected characteristics” to criminals, but currently believes such comparisons can be used as shorthand for comments on larger military actions. The issue has been referred to an oversight board. Meta consulted with 145 stakeholders from civil society and academia across various global regions for this policy update.
Tony Blair, former UK Prime Minister, is advocating for digital identity as a solution to manage irregular migration, a pressing issue in the recent UK elections. In a piece for The Times addressed to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Blair proposes leveraging AI and digital ID systems to enhance border controls and immigration management.
Blair emphasises the need for a robust digital identity framework, suggesting it could replace traditional national ID cards. This approach, he argues, could ensure accurate identification without the need for centralised databases or government-issued cards, which has sparked controversy in the past.
Despite Blair’s advocacy, UK government officials, including Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, hesitated to reintroduce national ID cards. Instead, the government plans to establish a new enforcement and return unit to tackle illegal migration and smuggling rings.
The debate over digital ID versus national ID cards has historical roots, dating back to Blair’s earlier proposals in the 2000s. The issue resurfaced recently amidst concerns over illegal migration and the small boat crisis in the English Channel, prompting renewed discussions about the role of ID documents in modern immigration policies.
Why does this matter?
Advocates like the Open Identity Exchange stress that if implemented adequately through frameworks like the Digital Verification Service, digital ID systems could drive economic growth and improve service delivery in sectors beyond immigration, such as healthcare and education. Despite challenges, proponents argue that a secure, decentralised digital ID system could substantially benefit the UK’s digital economy and public services.
Google Wallet is set to introduce support for American biometric passports, a move highlighted by code leaker Assemble Debug. Initially launching in the US, users will scan their passports into Google Wallet to create a digital ID pass. The pass enables identity verification via NFC scanners or QR codes, although carrying a physical passport is still recommended. The feature, expected in an upcoming update, aligns with Google’s expansion into digital IDs, a space where Apple Wallet is also advancing with similar capabilities.
While not yet live, the integration of passport support was included in Google Wallet’s beta version, signalling imminent implementation. The development follows Google Wallet’s recent additions, including support for 29 more banks this June, focusing heavily on payment functionalities. In the US, digital driver’s licenses from states like Georgia and Arizona are already part of Google Wallet, facilitating airport use, among other services. Additionally, Google Wallet has integrated access control credentials from HID Global, broadening its utility beyond traditional payments.
WhatsApp is developing a new AI feature to create user avatars, following in the footsteps of Meta AI. According to WABetaInfo, this ‘Imagine Me’ feature will allow users to generate AI-based avatars by typing prompts in their chats. The feature was discovered in the latest WhatsApp beta for Android 2.24.14.13, available through the Google Play Beta programme.
Users can generate avatars by typing ‘Imagine me’ in the Meta AI chat or ‘@Meta AI imagine me’ in other chats. A screenshot from WABetaInfo shows how this feature might look. Once enabled, users must take setup photos, and the AI will create images based on the provided prompts. The resulting images are automatically shared in the conversation, with user privacy preserved.
The feature is optional and requires users to opt in through their settings. While currently available only in limited countries, it is still under development and cannot yet be tested by all users. WhatsApp aims to make Meta AI a more integral part of daily user interactions with this innovative avatar creation tool.
Meta has announced a significant update regarding using AI labels across its platforms, replacing the ‘Made with AI’ tag with ‘AI info’. This change comes after widespread complaints about the incorrect tagging of photos. For instance, a historical photograph captured on film four decades ago was mistakenly labelled AI-generated when uploaded with basic editing tools like Adobe’s cropping feature.
Kate McLaughlin, a spokesperson for Meta, emphasised that the company is continuously refining its AI products and collaborating closely with industry partners on AI labelling standards. The new ‘AI info’ label aims to clarify that content may have been modified with AI tools rather than solely created by AI.
The issue primarily stems from how metadata tools like Adobe Photoshop apply information to images, which platforms interpret. Following the expansion of its AI content labelling policies, daily photos shared on Meta’s platforms, such as Instagram and Facebook, were erroneously tagged as ‘Made with AI’.
Initially, the updated labelling will roll out on mobile apps before extending to web platforms. Clicking on the ‘AI info’ tag will display a message similar to the previous label, explaining why it was applied and acknowledging the use of AI-powered editing tools like Generative Fill. Despite advancements in metadata tagging technology like C2PA, distinguishing between AI-generated and authentic images remains a work in progress.
The Detroit Police Department has agreed to new rules limiting how it can use facial recognition technology after a legal settlement was reached with Robert Williams, who was wrongfully arrested based on the technology in 2020. Williams was detained for over 30 hours after software identified him with video surveillance of another Black man stealing watches. With the support of the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, he submitted a complaint in 2020 and then sued in 2021.
So far, Detroit police are responsible for three of the seven reported instances when the use of facial recognition has led to a wrongful arrest. Detroit’s police chief, James White, has blamed ‘human error’, and not the software, saying his officers relied too much on the technology.
What does this change concretely?
To combat human error, Detroit police officers will now be trained in the risks of facial recognition in policing. Another change states that suspects identified by the technology must be linked to the crime by other evidence before being used in photo lineups. Along with other policy changes, the police department will have to launch an audit into facial recognition searches since 2017, when it first started using the technology.
In spite of this incident, police say facial recognition technology is too useful a tool to be abandoned entirely. According to the head of informatics with Detroit’s crime intelligence unit, Stephen Lamoreaux, the Police Department remains ‘very keen to use technology in a meaningful way for public safety.’ However, some cities like San Francisco have banned its use because of concerns about privacy and racial bias. Microsoft also said it would not be providing its facial recognition software to the US police until a national framework for the using facial recognition based on human rights is put in place.
