COME WORK at the ACLU! @aclu-norcal.bsky.social is hiring attorneys to work on tech and civil rights (my team) and the criminal legal/immigration system. These folks will work at the cutting edge of legal and policy efforts in California and beyond. Apply here: www.aclunorcal.org/jobs/staff-a...

Staff Attorney / Senior Staff Attorney - ACLU of Northern California

Develop and carry out litigation and policy advocacy to advance to protect and defend civil rights and civil liberties for all Californians.

aclunorcal.org

The Tech Team at ACLU is hiring! We are looking for a Data Scientist with expertise in NLP and AI ethics to work on using language tech to support ACLU's mission. Come help us tackle questions about how AI systems can be carefully applied to support the public interest. www.aclu.org/careers/appl...

Careers at ACLU

Join our team! We’re looking for committed, passionate people for open roles at the ACLU.

aclu.org

It's been a journey of nearly 3 years, but I'm very excited to announce the CNTR AISLE Portal! 🚀 cntr-aisle.org It’s a new way to review and evaluate the 1,000+ AI bills introduced in the U.S. over the last three years. Check out the Bill Library and our Profiles#AIPolicy #OpenData

Personal update: I’m writing a book about how AI is impacting women’s sports, as part of the Co-Opting AI Series with the University of California Press! More context here and below:🧵 keepthescore.substack.com/p/on-grappli...

On Grappling with AI-Induced Imposter Syndrome

In the 2023 Women’s World Cup, the United States Women’s National Soccer Team faced their earliest exit from the tournament in the team’s history.

keepthescore.substack.com

One of the first things anyone learns about facial recognition is that it is often wrong and that it is biased. And yet ICE is using it all day every day to determine legal status & who to detain. And now we have a high-profile example of it being flat out wrong: www.404media.co/ices-facial-...

ICE’s Facial Recognition App Misidentified a Woman. Twice

In testimony from a CBP official obtained by 404 Media, the official described how Mobile Fortify returned two different names after scanning a woman's face during an immigration raid. ICE has said th...

404media.co

We released a new report in partnership with the Center for Tech Responsibility at Brown University on how policymakers and researchers can better analyze AI legislation to protect our civil rights and liberties.

Making Sense of AI Policy Using Computational Tools | TechPolicy.Press

A new report examines how to use computational tools to evaluate policy, with AI policy as a case study.

techpolicy.press

a recent New York State audit of NYC's Local Law 144 — designed to ostensibly regulate potential bias and discrimination in automated employment tools — is fairly scathing in its assessment of how implementation and enforcement of the law is going. simply put, LL 144 does not work.

You can take action right now, if you live in Massachusetts. Doing this takes less than one minute and will make a significant impact. Do it now. action.aclu.org/send-message...

TELL MASSACHUSETTS LAWMAKERS: SUPPORT THE LOCATION SHIELD ACT IN 2025

Please take action!

action.aclu.org

1/ At bargaining yesterday, @propublica.org management said that they should have 100% discretion to replace workers with AI and would not commit to labeling future AI-generated content.

Was really challenging to participate in this, but I think I was able to pen something real, important, and personal to my experience in AI. Remember that GenAI is not *all* of AI nor all of what it should be. www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/15/1...

Generative AI hype distracts us from AI’s more important breakthroughs

It's a seductive distraction from the advances in AI that are most likely to improve or even save your life

technologyreview.com

Niall Firth@niallfirth.bsky.social · 8mo ago

OK here we go! Today we launch Hype Correction, our critical look at where AI is, and how we should reset our expectations. www.technologyreview.com/supertopic/h...

Started a thread in the other place and bringing it over here - I really think we should be more vocal about the opportunities that lay at the intersection of these two options! So I'm starting a live thread of new roles as I become aware of them - feel free to add / extend / share :

Margaret Mitchell@mmitchell.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Life situations are bleak right now for a lot of people. In tech, the "Venn Diagram" of (1) positive work and (2) making enough money to support your family is increasingly non-overlapping. We all do what we can. This image has been living in my mind rent-free for months.

A reminder that anything recorded on a device like this AI "friend" could be used against you — by hackers, private companies, or the government. This technology isn't a friend, it's surveillance.

AI startup Friend spent more than $1M on all those subway ads | TechCrunch

If you’ve been on the New York subway recently, you’ve probably seen stark white ads promoting a wearable AI device called Friend.

techcrunch.com

Customs and Border Protection agents searched nearly 15,000 devices from April through June of this year, a nearly 17 percent spike over the previous three-month high in 2022. "The real issue is the chilling effect it has on all travelers."

Phone Searches at the US Border Hit a Record High

Customs and Border Protection agents searched nearly 15,000 devices from April through June of this year, a nearly 17 percent spike over the previous three-month high in 2022. "The real issue is the chilling...

wrd.cm

After @riaclu.bsky.social sued, a judge blocked the Trump administration from imposing ideological restrictions on federal grant recipients who serve domestic violence survivors, LGBTQ youth, and unhoused people. These organizations can continue their critical work without political interference.

Court blocks Trump admin's anti-LGBTQ+ restrictions on grants for domestic violence and homeless shelters

The order comes in a lawsuit brought by a nationwide coalition of groups serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence, LGBTQ+ youth, and people experiencing homelessness.

advocate.com

The use of AI shouldn’t come at the expense of our civil liberties. At the ACLU’s first-ever Civil Rights in the Digital Age AI Summit, we’re considering ways to leverage emerging technology as an asset, while safeguarding our civil rights.

As AI Gains Power, We Must Push for Guardrails to Protect Civil Liberties | ACLU

As AI increasingly makes decisions in hiring, policing, and social services, the ACLU’s Civil Rights in the Digital Age Summit focuses on promoting responsible AI design to ensure technology protects ...

aclu.org

Gerchick et al: Auditing the Audits: Lessons for Algorithmic Accountability from Local Law 144's Bias Audits #FAccT2025

getting excited for my #FAccT2025 tutorial - today 5 pm Athens time! I'm sharing new work with @berkeleyischool.bsky.social's awesome Prof. Diag Davenport: "Public Interest Tech (PIT) Clinics as Applied Sociotechnical Pedagogy." the idea: bring real-world experience & impact into tech education 💫

We’re here at the airport as Mahmoud Khalil returns home after over 100 days of being unjustly detained for his advocacy for Palestinian rights. Welcome home, Mahmoud! ❤️

Excited to be at #FAccT2025 and honored to see our work “auditing the audits” resulting from one of the first enacted AI laws in the U.S. received an honorable mention! I’ll be presenting this work on Wednesday at 11 AM Athens time: programs.sigchi.org/facct/2025/p...

ACM FAccT@facct.bsky.social · last yr.

🏆 Announcing the #FAccT2025 best paper awards! 🏆 Congratulations to all the authors of the three best papers and three honorable mention papers. Be sure to check out their presentations at the conference next week! facct-blog.github.io/2025-06-20/b...

Some results from this paper: trans people, nonbinary people, and disabled people (especially neurodivergent people and people with mental health conditions) have more negative views towards AI than the general US population. #FAccT2025

Oliver Haimson@haimson.bsky.social · last yr.

Next, a paper I led, "AI Attitudes Among Marginalized Populations in the U.S.: Nonbinary, Transgender, and Disabled Individuals Report More Negative AI Attitudes," with @mayworms.info, ‪@shoreingber.bsky.social‬, @naz-andalibi.bsky.social deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/ha... #FAccT2025

BREAKING: A federal judge reversed National Institutes of Health's terminations of hundreds of critical research grants that were canceled because of their alleged connection to disfavored topics, including diversity, equity, inclusion, and gender identity. This is a major win for public health.

The National Institutes of Health's efforts to shut down research that doesn't align with the Trump administration’s political agenda is a direct attack on public health.

The unlawful detention of Mahmoud Khalil is one of the most extreme threats to free speech in 50 years. Trump is sending a message that people who speak out will be punished — but we have a message for him, too. We'll see you in court.

Opinion | This Is the Greatest Threat to Free Speech Since the Red Scare

Mahmoud Khalil’s detention is a frightening sign of an authoritarian slide.

nytimes.com

BREAKING: We and @nyclu.org are joining Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil's legal team after ICE unlawfully arrested and detained him in retaliation for his political views. We will see the Trump administration in court.

ACLU Technology is hiring an AI Research Intern for Summer 2025! Come help us conduct applied research to evaluate the rapidly evolving landscape of generative AI tools against ACLU transparency, privacy, security, and algorithmic accountability values. 🧵 www.aclu.org/careers/inte...

As technologists at a civil rights org, we often grapple with how we can use AI in service of our work, while also fighting harmful uses of AI. ACLU CTO @techforimpact.bsky.social recently shared more about our approach to internal uses of gen AI: technicallyoptimistic.substack.com/p/procedures...

Navigating AI, Week 2

Developing a risk-focused framework

technicallyoptimistic.substack.com

Anti-abortion politicians will stop at nothing to deny people essential health care, including threatening to lock up doctors and those who help people get abortions. No one should face prosecution for helping someone end their pregnancy.

New York doctor indicted for prescribing abortion pill in Louisiana

The case appears to be the first instance of criminal charges against a doctor accused of sending abortion pills to another state since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

nbcnews.com

Last year we started a project to download and preserve public data. lil.law.harvard.edu/blog/2025/01... Since saving public data is in the news today — but is always needed — let’s talk about what you can do to help.

Preserving Public U.S. Federal Data | Library Innovation Lab

lil.law.harvard.edu

One more call for folks to apply for our Algorithmic Justice role ahead of the priority deadline on December 16!

Marissa Kumar Gerchick@mkgerchick.bsky.social · 2y ago

ACLU is hiring an Algorithmic Justice Fellow to work on cutting edge projects focused on digital rights! Come work with us to interrogate how automated systems are being used in high stakes areas. Please share widely! www.aclu.org/careers/appl...