Uploaded August 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago

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What happens when an algorithm gets it wrong? In the first of a four-part series on face ID, Jennifer Strong and the team at MIT Technology Review explore the arrest of a man who was falsely accused of a crime using facial recognition. The episode also starts to unpack the complexities of this technology and introduce some thorny questions about its sue.


We meet:

Robert and Melissa Williams
Peter Fussey, University of Essex
Hamid Khan, Stop LAPD Spying Coalition

Part 2: youtu.be/o4H6NYa1iK0
Part 3: youtu.be/_ftGU5FN_ts
Part 4: youtu.be/Ib3b37MnSiU

Credits: This episode was reported and produced by Jennifer Strong, Tate Ryan-Mosley and Emma Cillekens. We had help from Karen Hao and Benji Rosen. We’re edited by Michael Reilly and Gideon Lichfield. Our technical director is Jacob Gorski. Special thanks to Kyle Thomas Hemingway and Eric Mongeon.