Google is expecting to pull ahead in the highly-competitive smartphone race with the unveiling of the Pixel 4. While most of the details have been kept under wraps unlike the Galaxy Note 10, it’s already been confirmed that the tech giant is working extensively to refine its facial recognition software.
As we know, Google uses AI to power a large chunk of its products. And to train the said AI, the company needs to feed as extensive a dataset as possible. As per ZDNet‘s report, Google employees have been stopping passers-by in the street and asking if they can use their faces for facial recognition training.
The volunteers are being asked to hold a phone in selfie mode and move it around to analyze every minute detail of their appearance. Google is also giving a $5 Amazon or Starbucks gift card for their troubles.
While it’s a pretty old-school method, we can’t help being impressed by Google’s transparency.
Google has revealed that it wants to make Pixel 4’s face recognition software as inclusive as possible. And to achieve that, the company is mapping a diverse set of faces.
A statement read:
Our goal is to build the feature with robust security and performance. We’re also building it with inclusiveness in mind, so as many people as possible can benefit.
The company is also keeping a close eye on the volunteers’ data security, allowing them to decide what ultimately happens to their faces.
Although face samples inherently can’t be anonymous, each participant is assigned an abstract identity number. We separately keep each participant’s email address, in order to remove data upon request.
Google will keep each volunteer’s data for 18 months (cut down from 5 years) and won’t associate it with any other distinguishable details about the person.
Source: Android Police
