The sweeping use of facial recognition software across public and private sectors has raised alarm bells in communities of color, for good reason. The data that feed the software, the photographic technology in the software, the application of the software—all these factors work together against darker-skinned people. Datasets are “dirty…
Articles Posted by Pillsbury's Internet & Social Media Team
About Face: Algorithm Bias and Damage Control
As research continues to prove that AI is not an impartial arbiter of who’s who (or who’s what), various mechanisms are being devised to mitigate the collateral damage from facial recognition software. Legislation: Since 2019, several bills have been introduced in the House or Senate to address privacy issues and…
The Increasing Embrace of Tokenization in Commercial Real Estate
We’ve written frequently about the distributed ledger technology (DLT) and the blockchain—on the interesting variations of the technology, its ability to bolster other technologies and its potential applications on everything from team giveaways to trading platforms (be they for cryptocurrency or energy commodities). In “Blockchain-Based Tokenization of Commercial Real Estate,”…
Retooling AI: Algorithm Bias and the Struggle to Do No Harm
Say what you want about the digital ad you received today for the shoes you bought yesterday, but research shows that algorithms are a powerful tool in online retail and marketing. By some estimates, 80 percent of Netflix viewing hours and 33 percent of Amazon purchases are prompted by automated…
Red Dots and Banners: Consent and Privacy Concerns in Videoconferences
“One who invites another to his home or office takes a risk that the visitor may not be what he seems, and that the visitor may repeat all he hears and observes when he leaves. But he does not and should not be required to take the risk that what…
Is DNA the Answer to the Data Storage Crisis?
Ninety percent of the digital data in the world has been generated in the past two years, and with the growth of search engines, social media sites, smart cars and the Internet of Things (IoT), that pace is just accelerating. One possible solution lies in our very DNA. In “When…
Think Before You Link: The Legal Risk with Nested Hyperlinks in Online Terms
As regulations and best practices regarding online terms continues to impose increasing requirements on operators of websites, apps and online services, a basic set of online terms can now encompass as many as half a dozen documents! One just needs to glance at the footer of most any website to…
Overstock Rockets to New All-Time Highs on the Back of COVID-19 and Patented Digital Security Trading Platform
With bitcoin prices rocketing nearly 300% from trough to peak when COVID-19 lockdowns were announced in March 2020 and then relaxed in July 2020, I thought I would revisit a blockchain company we discussed earlier last year to see how it has progressed and been valued by the financial community:…
Keeping Your Company Afloat Using Intellectual Property
Many companies are increasingly looking to the federal government during COVID-19 for liquidity or other financial assistance. Colleague Drew Schulte recently spoke with host Joel Simon on Pillsbury’s Industry Insights podcast and highlighted a variety of strategies available to companies with intellectual property assets (and particularly patents or patentable assets)…
Banks, Payments and Fintech—Staying Nimble and Customer-Focused during a Pandemic
Recently, Pillsbury’s Deborah Thoren-Peden sat down with a panel of experts that included Millicent Calinog Tracey (former Wells Fargo SVP), Samantha Ettus (founder and CEO of Park Place Payments) and Pillsbury partner John Barton. They discussed how businesses and the customer experience have been impacted due to COVID-19 and how…