Facial Recognition or Faceless Man?

Building Tomorrow
E45 -

Our brains cannot remember the faces of everyone we cross on the street, but for better & for worse facial recognition software can.

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Hosts
Paul Matzko
Tech & Innovation Editor
Guests
Matthew Feeney

Matthew Feeney is head of technology and innovation at the Centre for Policy Studies. He was previously the director of Cato’s Project on Emerging Technologies, where he worked on issues concerning the intersection of new technologies and civil liberties, and before that, he was assistant editor of Rea​son​.com. Matthew is a dual British/​American citizen and received both his BA and MA in philosophy from the University of Reading in England.

Caleb Watney

Caleb Watney is the director of innovation policy at PPI. His work focuses on the policy levers the US can use to increase long-​term rates of innovation, including high-​skill immigration, basic science funding, R&D incentives, and the development of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

His commentary has been published in The Atlantic, Politico, the Wall Street Journal, Lawfare, and the National Review. He has also been cited in the New York Times, Vox, Ars Technica, and the National Journal. Previously, Caleb worked as a technology policy fellow at the R Street Institue, and as a graduate research fellow at the Mercatus Center. He received his master’s in economics from George Mason University and a bachelor of business administration from Sterling College.

Facial recognition software will transform our lives for good or for ill. On the one hand, it will be used to make retail transactions more seamless, to replace keyed entry into houses and cars, and to provide other benefits that we can’t yet even imagine. However, it could also be used for corporate and governmental surveillance in ways that undermine civil liberties and reduce privacy. Caleb Watney joins Matthew and Paul to discuss the potential promise and peril of facial recognition technology.

What does facial recognition technology do? What algorithms or parameters are being used with facial recognition? What are the positive applications of facial recognition software? How can facial recognition improve our lives? Will facial recognition be used for ‘targeted search’? Where does our data go? How much anonymity should we enjoy?

Further Reading:

A Framework for Increasing Competition and Diffusion in Artificial Intelligence, written by Caleb Watney

Facial Recognition Software: The Future Is Here, written by Daniel Newman

Matthew Feeney discusses facial recognition software at airports on FOX News

Giving TSA Facial-​Recognition Software Isn’t Worth a Faster Security Line, written by Matthew Feeney

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The Brave New World of DNA Databases, Building Tomorrow Podcast