What do bail decisions, Spotify playlists, and your child's future have in common? They're all shaped by algorithms, often without your knowledge or consent. Dr. Avriel Epps, founder of AI4Abolition, joins Siara to reveal the real-world consequences of algorithmic bias in areas like criminal justice, healthcare, and childhood development. They also discuss what it means to practice digital consent as a parent—from opting out of facial recognition at airports to refusing to post photos of their child online.

Key Takeaways:

• Algorithms are not neutral, they reflect the values, power structures, and historical biases embedded in their training data.
• Algorithmic bias affects life-altering decisions, from bail and parole to medical diagnoses and mortgage approvals.
• Surveillance technologies like facial recognition disproportionately harm Black and Brown communities, especially in the criminal legal system.
• Opting out is a form of resistance. Dr. Epps refuses airport facial recognition scans and doesn’t post photos of their child to practice digital consent.
• AI already shapes childhood development, especially through platforms like TikTok and Character AI, often without safeguards.
• Parents can protect privacy by delaying smartphone use and modeling critical digital habits.
• The AI4Abolition initiative uses technology to build community-led alternatives to carceral systems and promotes collective data rights.
• Spotify recommendation systems demonstrated algorithmic gender bias, highlighting how music platforms reinforce industry inequities.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro/Teasers01:19 Predictive AI in the Criminal Legal System33:04 The Ethics of Opting Into Technology36:36 The Importance of Opting Out of Facial Recognition38:54 Technology as the Amazon Rainforest42:22 Teaching Kids About AI and Its Implications45:26 AI's Impact on Childhood Development49:45 The Dilemma of Sharing Children's Images Online55:38 Informed Consent and Children's Data58:52 Parenting in the Digital Age01:03:20 AI for Abolition: Building Collective Power