Open MIC and ICCR recently collaborated to release “Dehumanization, Discrimination and Deskilling: The Impact of Digital Tech on Low-Wage Workers.” The investor brief explores how surveillance tech, algorithmic management systems, displacement by AI and automated hiring tools contribute to increased workplace discrimination, diminished autonomy, and reduced job quality.
Encouraged by strong votes at AI companies, as well as Microsoft’s inaugural Responsible AI Transparency Report, Open MIC and partners seek to build momentum for more disclosure and remediation of AI risks.
Investors in Meta Inc. and Alphabet Inc. used votes at their recent annual meetings to highlight serious concerns about the deployment of generative artificial intelligence (gAI) technology and its potential to generate harmful disinformation and misinformation. A shareholder proposal at Meta won 56.3% of the independent shareholder vote, while a similar proposal at Alphabet won 45.7% of the independent shareholder vote.
At Meta’s annual meeting last week, a majority of independent shareholders (53.6%), representing $635 billion in market cap, voted in favor of a proposition demanding more disclosure of the costs and risks associated with the development and deployment of generative AI products. Alphabet shareholders will vote on a similar resolution this Friday.
Over the next two weeks, shareholders at Meta and Alphabet will vote on first-time resolutions calling for more disclosure on the costs and risks of generative AI to the company and society, and on how the companies are mitigating those risks. To date, neither company reports on how well it adheres to the promises it makes with regard to AI, a trend with a long precedent in the social media era.
A coalition of investor advocates led by Azzad Asset Management withdrew a shareholder proposal this month after reaching an agreement with Apple Inc. regarding the company’s plan to improve its transparency reports and specifically add clarity around the removal of applications from its app store in response to government requests.
A new letter from Apple Inc. seeks to block a request by a group of shareholders for the company to study its diversity metrics and to tie CEO compensation to racial and gender diversity achievements. The move comes as Apple and other tech companies have come under increasing scrutiny for failing to improve racial and gender diversity.
A new report released by Open MIC today finds that the lack of racial diversity in the tech industry undermines financial performance, demanding investors’ attention. The report titled, “Breaking the Mold: Investing in Racial Diversity in Tech,” highlights existing data showing that black, Latino, and Native Americans are unrepresented in the tech industry by 16-to-18 percentage points compared to their presence in the U.S. labor force overall. The report provides recommendations intended to address significant shortcomings with respect to workforce data transparency as well as increasing diversity at all levels of the industry.
Apple Inc. investors are being asked to approve a shareholder proposal which would require the company to adopt an “accelerated recruitment policy” to increase racial and ethnic diversity among senior executives and its board.
