AI system for granting UK visas is biased, rights groups claim

Immigrant rights campaigners have begun a ground-breaking legal case to establish how a Home Office algorithm that filters UK visa applications actually works. The challenge is the first court bid to expose how an artificial intelligence program affects immigration policy decisions over who is allowed to enter the country. Foxglove, a new advocacy group promoting justice in the new technology sector, is supporting the case brought by the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) to legally force the Home Office to explain on what basis the algorithm "streams" visa applicants. The two groups both said they feared the AI "streaming tool" created three channels for applicants including a "fast lane" that would lead to "speedy boarding for white people". The Home Office has insisted that the algorithm is used only to allocate applications and does not ultimately rule on them.