Facebook to investigate claims its algorithms are discriminatory

Facebook is launching an investigation into whether its algorithms discriminate against minority ethnic groups, after internal protests forced the company to reassess the possibility that its machine learning systems could have picked up on real-world bias.

The company’s new “equity and inclusion” teams will be tasked with assessing the algorithms that govern Instagram and Facebook and making sure they are not biased against black, Hispanic and other minority ethnic groups. Facebook said the focus would be on “ensuring fairness and equitable product development are present in everything we do”.