Microsoft engineer warns its AI image tool creates violent, sexual images
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
The news: A Microsoft engineer, Shane Jones, sent letters to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Microsoft’s board that outline concerns over the tech giant’s AI image tool, which is powered by an OpenAI model.
The numbers: Microsoft has invested around USD13 billion ($121.59 billion) into OpenAI, which was last valued at over USD80 billion in February during an employee share sale.
The context: The letters explain the concerns held by the engineer about Microsoft’s “approach to responsible AI.” In the letters, Jones states that the Copilot Designer tool can be used to create depictions of sexualisation, conspiracy theories, drug use, and misuse of corporate trademarks and copyrights among others.
Jones shared the letters in a post on LinkedIn, and in his letter to FTC chair Lina Khan, he states: “I have repeatedly urged Microsoft to remove Copilot Designer from public use until better safeguards could be put in place.”
Jones began investigating the tool when discovered that he could bypass certain safety protocols that prevent the generation of harmful images in December last year. Copilot Designer is powered by OpenAI’s DALL-E 3 model.
The news comes just weeks after Google suspended its AI image generator, Gemini, after receiving widespread backlash that the images being created were historically inaccurate.
