Flock Uses Overseas Gig Workers to Build its Surveillance AI

This article was produced with support from WIRED. Flock, the automatic license plate reader (ALPR) and AI-powered camera company, uses overseas workers from Upwork to train its machine learning algorithms, with training material telling workers how to review and categorize footage including images people and vehicles in the U.S., according to material reviewed by 404 Media that…

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‘Martyrdom or Bust:’ Texas Man Caught Plotting Terror Attack Through Roblox Chats

This article was produced in collaboration with Court Watch, an independent outlet that unearths overlooked court records. Subscribe to them here. The FBI has accused a Texas man, James Wesley Burger, of planning an Islamic State-style terrorist attack on a Christian music festival and talking about it on Roblox. The feds caught Burger after another…

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In Unhinged Speech, Pete Hegseth Says He’s Tired of ‘Fat Troops,’ Says Military Needs to Go Full AI

Last week, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth called America’s Generals to Quantico to meet for an unknown reason. America’s top civilian military leader calling the generals home all at once is strange and unprecedented. It’s the kind of move that often presages something like a major war. But that’s not what he wanted. During a…

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