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AI for the public interest fund to explore bias in criminal justice and autonomous vehicles

The Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund, created in part by the Omidyar Network, Knight Foundation, and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, announced its first round of funding today, delivering $7.6 million to a variety of organizations around the world.

The $27 million fund for artificial intelligence in the public interest was first announced in early January.

The Miami Foundation will act as fiscal sponsor of the initiative, while Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab will act as anchor institutions for The Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund.

Initial investments of near $6 million at anchor institutions will focus on the exploration of global governance of AI and how AI may reinforce existing biases, particularly as it relates to underserved populations in media, criminal justice, and autonomous vehicles.

An additional $1.7 million will be given to support the work of nine organizations including:

ITS Rio will translate debates about AI and explore how AI is being deployed in Brazil and Latin America.

AI Now will research how AI is integrated into existing infrastructures, particularly as it’s applied to health care, data collection, and bias.

Access Now and Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence will explore data protection and AI relating to the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, which will come into effect next year.

Digital Asia Hub will work to establish the fund’s presence in Asia and host workshops and case studies to explore “the cultural, economic, and political forces uniquely influencing the development of the technology in Asia,” according to a statement provided to VentureBeat.

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