Clearview AI's Facial Recognition Software Sold to Private Companies, Raising Privacy Concerns

Clearview AI's Facial Recognition Software: A Privacy Nightmare?

This article from TechCrunch, published on February 27, 2020, investigates Clearview AI, a company that developed controversial facial recognition software. Despite claims that its technology was exclusively for law enforcement, reports indicated that Clearview AI was also courting private companies and had a less discerning client base than initially presented.

Key Revelations:

• Broad Client Base: While Clearview AI listed ICE, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and Macy's as paying customers, numerous private companies were reportedly testing the technology through 30-day free trials. These included entities like Walmart, Eventbrite, the NBA, Coinbase, and Equinox.
• Employee Access: Even without formal organizational relationships, individual employees of these companies might have been using Clearview's software. Some officials reportedly had no knowledge of their employees using the tool or denied ever trying it.
• NYPD Case Study: In one instance, the NYPD denied a formal relationship with Clearview AI, yet internal logs showed up to 30 officers conducted 11,000 searches using the software.
• Contradictory Claims: Clearview's CEO, Hoan Ton-That, had publicly stated on Fox Business that the company's technology was "strictly for law enforcement." This claim was directly contradicted by the reported client list.
• Privacy and Civil Liberties Concerns: The ACLU staff attorney, Nathan Freed Wessler, expressed grave concerns, calling the situation a "privacy, security, and civil liberties nightmare." He emphasized the lack of safeguards against abuse when government agents use such databases.
• Accuracy and Bias Issues: Beyond privacy concerns, critics highlighted the potential inaccuracies of facial recognition technology, particularly its struggles with accurately identifying non-white and non-male faces. This bias in data could lead to devastating real-world consequences.

Clearview AI's Technology and Investors:

• Data Scraping: Clearview AI's technology relies on scraping public images from various online sources, aggregating this data, and allowing users to search for matches. This practice has led to cease-and-desist letters from social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter for violating their terms of use.
• Early Investors: The company's early investors included private equity firm Kirenaga Partners and prominent investor Peter Thiel. Thiel, who also sits on Facebook's board, co-founded Palantir, a data analytics company favored by law enforcement.

Event Promotion:

The article also includes promotional content for TechCrunch All Stage, an event scheduled for July 15, 2025, in Boston, MA. The event aims to bring together founders and VCs for discussions on strategies, workshops, and networking. Special offers for passes are mentioned.

Related Topics and Popular Articles:

The article is tagged with terms like "clearview ai," "Peter Thiel," "Privacy," "surveillance," and "AI." It also links to related popular articles on TechCrunch, covering topics such as AI chatbots, tech layoffs, venture capital funds, and cybersecurity incidents.

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