Social enterprise company Aurora50 has launched a new campaign to address the gender bias that exists in artificial intelligence systems.
The company revealed the “Fixing the bAIs” initiative on Thursday at the Inclusion Summit held in Abu Dhabi.
The campaign underscores the underrepresentation of women in the data sets used to train AI, resulting in AI systems that are biased against women and that perpetuate gender inequality.
“It's a very visual representation of what's wrong … the challenge is that AI is learning from us and we have unconscious biases, so when these algorithms are learning from us, they are also bringing those biases into AI … It's really important that we challenge that,” Diana Wilde, co-founder of Aurora50, told The National on the sidelines of the event.
The project has set out to fix AI's gender bias using AI tools.
The initiative has created a significant image bank of women in various professions using image-generating AI tools.
The goal is to populate data sets that have public images with photos of women that are properly tagged to teach AI that women can be engineers, chief executives, astronauts, scientists and more. It will also teach AI that men can work in professions like nursing.
“A visual representation like this makes systemic issues and the unconscious bias very easy to understand, that's why it's such a good tool,” she said.
The issue of visual representation of gender equality was presented during the Inclusion Summit.
The UAE manufacturing industry said they are joining forces to find ways to increase the participation of women in the workplace within the traditionally male-dominated sector.
Under the new “Challenger Programme”, Emirates Global Aluminium has brought Adnoc, Ducab, Emirates Steel Arkan, Siemens, Strata Manufacturing, Taqa and TechnipFMC to promote gender diversity across the industrial sector.
The programme is in partnership with social enterprise Aurora50 and under the patronage of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation.
Women around the world will not achieve equality with men for 131 years – by the year 2154 – with only tepid progress on persistently large gender gaps, according to the Global Gender Gap Report 2023 released by the World Economic Forum in June.
The report shows that 146 countries have closed 68.4 per cent of the gender gap, up just 0.3 percentage points compared with the previous report.
The slow progress “creates an urgent case for renewed and concerted action”, Saadia Zahidi, managing director at the World Economic Forum, said at the time.
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Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction
Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Source: American Paediatric Association
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Basquiat in Abu Dhabi
One of Basquiat’s paintings, the vibrant Cabra (1981–82), now hangs in Louvre Abu Dhabi temporarily, on loan from the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The latter museum is not open physically, but has assembled a collection and puts together a series of events called Talking Art, such as this discussion, moderated by writer Chaedria LaBouvier.
It's something of a Basquiat season in Abu Dhabi at the moment. Last week, The Radiant Child, a documentary on Basquiat was shown at Manarat Al Saadiyat, and tonight (April 18) the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is throwing the re-creation of a party tonight, of the legendary Canal Zone party thrown in 1979, which epitomised the collaborative scene of the time. It was at Canal Zone that Basquiat met prominent members of the art world and moved from unknown graffiti artist into someone in the spotlight.
“We’ve invited local resident arists, we’ll have spray cans at the ready,” says curator Maisa Al Qassemi of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi's Canal Zone Remix is at Manarat Al Saadiyat, Thursday April 18, from 8pm. Free entry to all. Basquiat's Cabra is on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi until October
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
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Financial considerations before buying a property
Buyers should try to pay as much in cash as possible for a property, limiting the mortgage value to as little as they can afford. This means they not only pay less in interest but their monthly costs are also reduced. Ideally, the monthly mortgage payment should not exceed 20 per cent of the purchaser’s total household income, says Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.
“If it’s a rental property, plan for the property to have periods when it does not have a tenant. Ensure you have enough cash set aside to pay the mortgage and other costs during these periods, ideally at least six months,” she says.
Also, shop around for the best mortgage interest rate. Understand the terms and conditions, especially what happens after any introductory periods, Ms Glynn adds.
Using a good mortgage broker is worth the investment to obtain the best rate available for a buyer’s needs and circumstances. A good mortgage broker will help the buyer understand the terms and conditions of the mortgage and make the purchasing process efficient and easier.
Business Insights
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- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
Key Points
- Protests against President Omar Al Bashir enter their sixth day
- Reports of President Bashir's resignation and arrests of senior government officials
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
