On April 1, UT Austin's Machine Learning Lab held its inaugural public lecture, "AI For Accurate and Fair Imaging" with Alex Dimakis. The talk covered recent research into bias in AI imaging algorithms. In 2020, a deep learning generative model with groundbreaking performance was posted on the web. The model could turn low-resolution images to high-quality photos. A user uploaded a low-resolution image of President Obama and obtained an image that is now referred to as'White Obama'.

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin are leading the way when it comes to fine-tuning the accuracy of artificial intelligence. UT's Machine Learning Lab held a public lecture Friday titled, "AI for Accurate and Fair Imaging." Researchers with the lab's Institute for Foundations of Machine Learning (IFML) have been working to improve the algorithm that in 2020 produced an internet-famous image of former President Barack Obama, dubbed "White Obama." AI that was meant to enhance a pixelated, low-resolution photo of the 44th president instead transformed him into a white man. "Even though it looked like a good image, a high resolution, realistic image of a person, it had a bias," said Alex Dimakis, IFML co-director.

Staffing shortages within the Austin Police Department continues to cause long wait times for customers calling for emergency help prompting the department to turn to artificial intelligence for help at call centers. "I called 311 the other day and hung up, because I could no longer wait on hold," KXAN reporter Britt Moreno tweeted Tuesday. "Apparently even 911 is short staffed. There are 15 police dispatcher vacancies and 31, 911 operator vacancies!" Staffing shortages since the Austin City Council stripped the police of 30% of its funding in 2020 forced police to no longer respond to non-emergency calls and has caused significant wait times for those calling both 911 and the non-emergency 311 line.

… Haven and Texas State University Criminal Justice and Criminology. That project developed a "machine-learning patrol model" and community survey.