Twitter Offers Prizes to Outsiders to Spot Algorithmic Bias

The Twitter logo. Reuters
The Twitter logo. Reuters
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Twitter Offers Prizes to Outsiders to Spot Algorithmic Bias

The Twitter logo. Reuters
The Twitter logo. Reuters

Twitter has launched a campaign to detect artificial intelligence bias in its content. On Friday, the short-message app maker detailed a new bounty competition that offers prizes of up to $3,500 for showing Twitter how its technology incorrectly handles photos.

Earlier this year, Twitter confirmed a problem in its automatic photo cropping mechanism, concluding the software favored white people over Black people. The cropping mechanism is supposed to present the most important section of an image, according to the German News Agency.

Twitter has offered prizes to outside experts and observers to study its code and results to detect bogus, and help uncover algorithmic bias and address it.

According to the CNET website, tech companies have been used to offering prizes and inviting experts to detect security cavities in their products, but it is an industry first that a company resorts to this approach to uncover the bias of its algorithms.



Meta Says Testing Subscription Tier for Instagram

(FILES) This picture taken in Istanbul on August 2, 2024, shows the logo of the social network Instagram on a smartphone. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)
(FILES) This picture taken in Istanbul on August 2, 2024, shows the logo of the social network Instagram on a smartphone. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)
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Meta Says Testing Subscription Tier for Instagram

(FILES) This picture taken in Istanbul on August 2, 2024, shows the logo of the social network Instagram on a smartphone. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)
(FILES) This picture taken in Istanbul on August 2, 2024, shows the logo of the social network Instagram on a smartphone. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)

Instagram is testing a pay tier that offers features including letting subscribers discretely view "Story" posts that normally vanish after 24 hours, Meta told AFP on Monday, confirming a report by news website TechCrunch.

Paying users will also get more control over which accounts are permitted to see photos or videos they share in Story posts on the popular social network.

The new tier is being tested in "a few countries worldwide," a spokesperson said, without providing further details.

According to TechCrunch, they include Japan, Mexico and the Philippines, with subscription prices hovering around $2 per month.

Meta launched ad-free, paid versions of Facebook and Instagram in the United Kingdom last year to comply with legislation there.

Social media platforms Snapchat and X have offered paid premium version for several years.

Snapchat's parent company Snap recently reported having more than 25 million subscribers to its premium tier and being on pace for $1 billion in annual revenue.

Content creators at Instagram already have the ability to charge fans for access to exclusive content.


Microsoft Plans $1 Billion Investment in Thailand

FILE - A Microsoft sign and logo are displayed at the company's headquarters April 4, 2025, in Redmond, Wash. (AP Photo/Jason Redmond, File)
FILE - A Microsoft sign and logo are displayed at the company's headquarters April 4, 2025, in Redmond, Wash. (AP Photo/Jason Redmond, File)
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Microsoft Plans $1 Billion Investment in Thailand

FILE - A Microsoft sign and logo are displayed at the company's headquarters April 4, 2025, in Redmond, Wash. (AP Photo/Jason Redmond, File)
FILE - A Microsoft sign and logo are displayed at the company's headquarters April 4, 2025, in Redmond, Wash. (AP Photo/Jason Redmond, File)

Microsoft plans to invest $1 billion in Thailand over the next two years in cloud services and AI infrastructure, ⁠the Thai government ⁠said in a statement.

The investment includes developing digital ⁠skills of the Thai workforce, the statement said.

The announcement follows a number of data center investments to support AI, as Southeast ⁠Asia's ⁠second-largest economy looks to speed up projects involving data centers, electronics, and power generation.


Taiwan Probes 11 Chinese Firms for Illegal Poaching of Tech Talent

The Taipei 101 skyscraper is seen lit up before the Earth Hour in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/ Chiang Ying-ying)
The Taipei 101 skyscraper is seen lit up before the Earth Hour in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/ Chiang Ying-ying)
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Taiwan Probes 11 Chinese Firms for Illegal Poaching of Tech Talent

The Taipei 101 skyscraper is seen lit up before the Earth Hour in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/ Chiang Ying-ying)
The Taipei 101 skyscraper is seen lit up before the Earth Hour in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/ Chiang Ying-ying)

Taiwan said on Monday 11 Chinese firms are being investigated for alleged illegal poaching of semiconductor and other high-tech talent, stepping up efforts to curb technology outflows amid rising geopolitical tensions with Beijing.

More than 185 agents searched 49 locations and questioned 90 people this month in a coordinated investigation targeting Chinese firms suspected of recruiting Taiwanese engineers in Taiwan without approval, Taiwan's Investigation Bureau said.

It said Chinese companies under investigation disguised their ownership by setting up operations in Taiwan ⁠under the names of ⁠foreign-funded shell firms, or by establishing offices without authorization, to recruit talent and conduct business illegally in Taiwan.

Beijing claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan ⁠strongly objects to China's sovereignty claims and says only the island's people can decide their future.

Taiwanese law prohibits Chinese investment in some parts of the semiconductor supply chain, including chip design, and requires reviews for other areas such as chip packaging, making it difficult for Chinese chip companies to operate on the island legally.

The companies under investigation include electronics manufacturer Huaqin Technology, mobile power device maker Anker Innovations, semiconductor and printed circuit ⁠board equipment ⁠producer Circuit Fabology Microelectronics Equipment, power semiconductor manufacturer Yangzhou Yangjie Electronic Technology Co Ltd , and chip designer SG Micro.

The companies did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

China's scramble for chip talent and expertise has intensified as Beijing pushes for self-reliance in advanced semiconductors, amid a deepening tech rivalry with the US. A special task force set up in late 2020 has handled more than 100 similar cases involving suspected illegal recruitment and business activities by Chinese companies, the bureau said.