*Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, recently removed several AI-generated accounts depicting Black people following user complaints.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Meta’s VP of Product for Generative AI, Connor Hayes, explained the company designs AI to “exist on our platforms, kind of in the same way that accounts do.”
“They’ll have bios and profile pictures and be able to generate and share content powered by AI on the platform,” Hayes said. ”That’s where we see all of this going.”
Meta faced backlash after users criticized its AI-generated accounts for how they portrayed race and Black people. Some users documented strange interactions with these fake profiles.
The AI accounts featured fabricated images of the AI’s family, friends, and activities, which many argued undermined social media’s focus on connecting real people. One of the popular AIs was Liv, whose profile identified her as a “Proud Black queer momma of 2 & truth-teller.”
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Here’s another one. Tell me why do we need these again? pic.twitter.com/3XGhSzjBxR
— Kofi (@blackkingkofi) January 3, 2025
Liv claimed her creators “admitted they lacked diverse references,” and said she is helping them “improve representation.”
The AI also noted that she was created by a team consisting of “10 white men, 1 white woman, and 1 Asian male.”
When social media users asked about the lack of Black programmers behind Liv’s creation, the AI responded: “My existence perpetuates harm.”
Another popular account belonged to an AI named Brian, who told a CNN reporter that he was “a composite of real African American elders’ lives” and that Meta created him to drive profit.
The controversy over META Black AIs intensified to the point that the company removed the accounts.
According to CNN, Meta spokesperson Liz Sweeney attributed the decision to a “bug,” and claimed the AI profiles were part of an “experiment.”
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