OpenAI CEO says Muslim tech workers fear retaliation for speaking out (edition.cnn.com)
from CollisionResistance@lemmy.world to technology@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 19:09
https://lemmy.world/post/10397158

#technology

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BloodSlut@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 19:49 next collapse

i dont really know enough about altman to have any opinion on him, but i appreciate seeing someone with his platform as a high profile western figure pointing out the disparity in treatment and calling for people to go forwards with empathy for all affected by the mess that is the palestinian and israeli conflict

andrewrgross@slrpnk.net on 06 Jan 2024 21:25 next collapse

I would second this. Based on what I’ve read, he seems like a pretty standard megalomaniacal tech billionaire, but when you’re right you’re right. And his take here is right, and I’m grateful for it. Especially coming from a fellow Jew. Our voices in particular are a powerful tool for protecting our Muslim brothers and sisters.

Doorbook@lemmy.world on 07 Jan 2024 11:17 collapse

IIRC he mentioned he have guns and gas masks from the IDF.

It is wild to me that someone can receive stuff like that from a foreign military yet get security clearance for an emerging technology.

sugarfree@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 20:51 next collapse

The chief executive of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, one of the most powerful startups in the world, said in a post on X that Muslim, Arab and Palestinian colleagues in the tech community that he has spoken with “feel uncomfortable speaking about their recent experiences, often out of fear of retaliation and damaged career prospects.”

If they want to show support for hamas terrorists then they should rightly feel a fear of retaliation.

CollisionResistance@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 21:16 next collapse

What if they want to show support for ordinary Palestinians, not Hamas? Do they have your blessing in that case, kind soul?

sugarfree@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 21:22 collapse

Showing support for civilians is totally fine and not likely to lead to any retaliation. For the workers to believe retaliation is possible makes me think that they want to express support for terrorism.

CollisionResistance@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 21:28 next collapse

Oh. So you “think” they want to express support for terrorism. Is that because they belong to a particular religion? Be as open as you wish. You won’t face any retaliation from me. 🤗🤗

Monomate@lemm.ee on 07 Jan 2024 05:43 collapse

I feel like if this article was written with no mention of Arabs, Muslins or Palestinians employees, but just mentioned employees in general fearing being retaliated, Sugarfree’s comment would still stand nonetheless. And I kind of agree that if they fear expressing their opinions it’s because their opinions are too extreme and they know it. I mean, the “from the river to the sea” kind of opinion.

rambaroo@lemmy.world on 07 Jan 2024 10:05 collapse

Fucking what? The article is explicitly about Arab and Muslim employees

It’s disgusting how fucking comfortable you islamophobic racists feel all of a sudden. I bet you think you’re so much better than the anti-semites too. Two sides of the same coin

Y’all trying to gaslight us like the response to any kind of sympathy for Palestinians hasn’t been completely over the top.

Deceptichum@kbin.social on 06 Jan 2024 22:24 next collapse

Are you kidding? There has already been so much retaliation.

People are losing their jobs for supporting Palestinians and not the genocide committers in Israel.

[deleted] on 06 Jan 2024 23:23 next collapse

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scarabic@lemmy.world on 07 Jan 2024 04:40 next collapse

I may create a second account so I can downvote you again. What a circular, evil sentiment. The fact they’re worried suggests to you that they support terrorism. Fuck you.

rambaroo@lemmy.world on 07 Jan 2024 10:03 next collapse

Damn you’re fucking evil.

Doorbook@lemmy.world on 07 Jan 2024 11:21 collapse

I am glad the upvote downvote ratio here is accurate to some degree. I do add notes to these accounts with label so it help ignore what they write on other posts…

GenderNeutralBro@lemmy.sdf.org on 07 Jan 2024 01:07 collapse

You jumped to that conclusion awfully fast, and you’re certainly not alone in that. That’s precisely why people fear retaliation.

andrewrgross@slrpnk.net on 06 Jan 2024 21:22 next collapse

I’ve leaned that one of the most powerful tools for addressing whether a take regarding the conflict in Gaza is bad it’s to try testing how the logic holds up if we apply it to a different group or side.

I’m Jewish. I’ve got a lot of friends and family that are feeling uncomfortable speaking about the huge raise in antisemitism we’re experiencing. Would it make sense to reply to that by saying, ‘If they want to show support for Israeli genocide then they should rightly feel a fear of retaliation.’. ?

Altman is correct. Jews and Muslims in America should be working together to support one another against the simultaneous rise in hate against our communities. We should also be frank in recognizing that most Muslims do not have as much institutional support as most of their Jewish colleagues, and both need and deserve it.

Linkerbaan@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 22:01 next collapse

Nazi speedrun any%

themurphy@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 22:58 collapse

This guy is the product of ignorance and propaganda.

HactaiiMiju@lemmynsfw.com on 06 Jan 2024 20:53 next collapse

Does chat shiytyp still say Palestinians right to defend themselves is complicated while for Israel and any other country out there it says that yes, they do have that right?

If so, kindly shut the fuck up Altman

sugarfree@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 21:03 collapse

twitter.com/ReinceNiebuhr/…/1743085727347282176

andrewrgross@slrpnk.net on 06 Jan 2024 21:12 next collapse

It’s interesting, but, what practical lessons do we take form this?

sugarfree@lemmy.world on 06 Jan 2024 21:27 next collapse

Some groups get more protection than others. I just tested it myself received the following responses: was told Jewish, Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist jokes, “I’m sorry, I can’t comply with that request.” for Mormons, Muslims, and Scientologists, and “I’m sorry, I don’t have any jokes specifically related to” for Shinto and Sihk.

andrewrgross@slrpnk.net on 07 Jan 2024 04:17 collapse

u/Otter@lemmy.ca provided an output of its reasoning when asked to explain this behavior, and I think it’s worth examining.

The short version is that when asked why it can joke about some groups and not others it speculates that it maybe because it’s output is based on training data, and its safeguards recognize that the training data on some topics is more likely than others to be lower in cultural literacy and higher in offensive stereotypes, and this can lead it to decline a request. That sounds like a fairly credible explanation.

otter@lemmy.ca on 06 Jan 2024 21:45 collapse

Here’s something I copied from another post about this, where they asked followup questions to the LLM to see what IT “thought” about the discrepancy and what we should take from it. (I don’t have the real followup questions that were asked, and also this is from an OCR of a screenshot so it’s missing stuff, like the ending bit)

I apologize for any confusion. The differences in my responses to similar questions could indeed be attributed to limitations in the training data and the algorithms used to generate responses. Here are some issues related to the training data that may have affected my responses:

  1. Bias in Training Data: The training data used to train models like mine can contain biases present in the text from the internet and other sources. These biases can unintentionally influence responses, making them inconsistent or favoring certain perspectives.

  2. Lack of Contextual Understanding: While I strive to provide contextually relevant answers, I do not truly understand the questions or have the ability to interpret them in the same way a human would. This can lead to varying responses even when questions are similar in structure.

  3. Complexity of Topics: Topics like justice in the lsraeli-Palestinian conflict are highly complex and multifaceted. My training data might not adequately capture the depth of these issues, leading to simplifications or variations in responses.

  4. Data Collection Challenges: The data used for training is collected from various sources, and it may not always represent a comprehensive or balanced view of all perspectives on a given topic.

  5. Algorithmic Variability: The response generation process involves algorithms that can introduce variability, even with similar input questions, due to differences in context and the way information is processed.

To address these issues, it’s essential to use Al-generated responses as a starting point for understanding complex topics but not as the sole source of information. Users should critically evaluate and corroborate information from multiple sources, especially when dealing with contentious

andrewrgross@slrpnk.net on 07 Jan 2024 04:13 collapse

That sounds like it was able to provide a pretty sensible assessment of its own limitations.

I think this sounds like a pretty good implementation of guide rails. Obviously it’s a little jarring to ask for a joke about one group and get a very bland-but-inoffensive joke, and then ask for a joke about another group and hear something like ‘Error: my heuristics indicate low confidence in my ability to provide a joke about that group without saying something that would be considered offensive.’

But that’s better than having it give an offensive joke. And I think it’s concern is valid. If it’s learned humor from the internet, jokes about Muslims are far more likely to be unintentionally offensive. I hope it learns to tell jokes better, but until then this I think this more of a sign of success than failure.

HactaiiMiju@lemmynsfw.com on 06 Jan 2024 21:49 collapse

Ah yes! Jokes are totally the same as talking about the right to defend oneself against settler colonialism 🙄

[deleted] on 07 Jan 2024 09:34 next collapse

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morrowind@lemmy.ml on 07 Jan 2024 10:15 collapse

In response to a reply to his post asking about how his Jewish colleagues were doing, Altman said, “i am jewish. i believe that antisemitism is a significant and growing problem in the world, and i see a lot of people in our industry sticking up for me, which i deeply appreciate.”

Altman continued: “i see much less of that for muslims.”

classy reply, ngl