“We see everything.”
Workers reviewing footage used to train Meta Platforms’ AI smart glasses report seeing deeply private moments — bank details, conversations, even people naked in their homes.
Who protects user privacy and the workers reviewing this data?
www.svd.se/a/K8nrV4/met...
This #InternationalWomensDay we celebrate the women behind the AI revolution. 💜
Across Africa and beyond, women data labelers do the vital, often unseen work that trains the models shaping our digital world.
Your work matters.
#IWD2026 #WomenInAI #DataLabelers #DLA
Meta 'Pervert glasses' — trained by human data annotators who have to watch uncomfortable, deeply private video clips in 10-hour shifts @datalabelers.bsky.social
So on top of perversity, "a robot facade for human slavery" (Evan Cofsky on LI)
Ephantus will also shine a light on the inspiring efforts of data labelers worldwide to build a fairer, more just digital economy.
Register now: www.sfais.org
In his masterclass, “Beyond the Algorithm: The Global Supply Chain of Human Labor for AI”, he will expose the dangerous, underpaid work behind AI systems, data labeling and content moderation, tracing it to histories of gendered and colonial exploitation.
Behind every algorithm, who pays the price? Join Data Labelers Association Vice President @ephantuskanyugi.bsky.social Kanyugi who will be speaking at the Singapore Future AI Summit 2025 on October 7th.
A must read! Great investigation into the strategy of mass recruitment used by AI data work firms. (And featuring lots of great folks like @joan1k.bsky.social @ephantuskanyugi.bsky.social @datalabelers.bsky.social @casilli.bsky.social @adiod.bsky.social)
Big news!
The Data Labelers Association (DLA) now has a page on the Data Workers' Inquiry platform!
🔗 data-workers.org/DLA
@dataworkersinquiry.bsky.social @adiod.bsky.social @milamiceli.bsky.social @krystalkauffman.bsky.social
#DataLabelers #DigitalLabor
Screenshot of the blogpost: How We Made Data Workers' Inquiry, by Milagros Miceli, DWI’s Principal Investigator and Project Lead. This piece traces how Data Workers' Inquiry came to life: not as a project with clear answers, but as a messy, stubborn attempt to put research in the hands of the people living the realities researchers usually write about
One year ago, on #LaborDay, we launched Data Workers' Inquiry. The process was messy and uncertain, but driven by the need to do research differently.
I wrote a reflection on what this first year taught us:
data-workers.org/about/how-to...
Thanks for reading and for supporting this work.
💡Want to know what powers the world’s smartest AI systems?
Start here — meet the workers.
📲 Explore the DLA page: datalabelers.org
@joan1k.bsky.social
#DataLabeling #InvisibleLabor #AIJustice
3/4
Deep thanks to @DataWorkersInquiry for amplifying our voices and standing in solidarity with us.
Building power takes courage — and community.
🖤🧠💪🏽
#SolidarityForever #TechWorkersUnite
2/4
We’re the first worker-led association representing Kenya’s data labeling workforce.
Rooted in solidarity and dignity, DLA is built by and for data workers — the people behind AI.
We fight for:
✔ Fair pay
✔ Safe working conditions
✔ Recognition and inclusion in AI’s future
#AIEthics #WorkerPower
Big news!
The Data Labelers Association (DLA) now has a page on the Data Workers' Inquiry platform!
🔗 data-workers.org/DLA
@dataworkersinquiry.bsky.social @adiod.bsky.social @milamiceli.bsky.social @krystalkauffman.bsky.social
#DataLabelers #DigitalLabor
Joan joins virtually by video, along with Rim and Andreas in person at stage 3 of re-publica conference
#rp25 hosts 60+ sessions on AI. Few discuss the worker involved.
“Am I Not Human? Data workers behind our AI systems and social media platforms speak out”
🇰🇪Joan from @datalabelers.bsky.social
🇩🇪 Andreas TikTok Works Council Chair
🪑Chaired by Rim of @superrrnetwork.bsky.social #contentmoderation
➡️➡️ Am 22. Juli findet ab 18:00 Uhr das Online-Seminar "Nicht von Geisterhand" der @eaberlin.de statt. Es geht um KI und die Ausbeutung von Datenarbeiter:innen. u.a. mit @adiod.bsky.social & MdB @sonjalemke.dielinkebt.de & Mitgliedern der kürzlich gegründeten @datalabelers.bsky.social Association:
🚨NEW INQUIRY!
@joan1k.bsky.social from @datalabelers.bsky.social discusses beginnings, gratitude, and partnerships in this piece.
@dataworkersinquiry.bsky.social is an active partner of the DLA, and we remain united in the fight for the rights of data workers worldwide!
data-workers.org/DLA/
Excited to be introducing this latest Inquiry...head to the data workers inquiry website and check out this new inquiry by @joan1k.bsky.social of the @datalabelers.bsky.social
Flyer for the Data Labelers Association (DLA)
Exciting news! We’ve just launched “Organizing Across Borders” by Joan Kinyua - a data labeler, organizer, and president of the Data Labelers Association (DLA). In this inquiry, Joan reflects on the DLA’s formation and the cross-border solidarity that helped make it possible. data-workers.org/DLA/
Wilington Shitawa, drawing from his personal experiences and interviews with fellow workers Andrea, Derrick, and Edwin, created the comic „Click Captives: The Unseen Struggle of Data Workers“.
Wilington Shitawa
Wilington Shitawa is a former data worker and quality analyst who has worked at Cloud Factory and Sama in Nairobi, Kenya. Drawing from his personal experiences and interviews with fellow workers Andrea, Derrick, and Edwin, he created the comic „Click Captives: The Unseen Struggle of Data Workers“.
Happy Mother's Day!
To all the moms holding it down, pushing through unseen struggles, and showing up no matter what — thank you. You are the backbone of families, communities, and our world.
Here’s to recognizing your sacrifices not just today, but every day. 💐
#MothersDay #ThankYouMoms
𝗙𝘂𝗻 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁:
The first "data labeling" for AI can be traced back to the 1960s when researchers manually labeled images of faces to train early facial recognition systems, long before computers could even process images in color! #AI #Datalabeling #DataAnnotation
6/6
To all AI firms, platforms, and policymakers:
🔍 Be transparent.
✍🏽 Get informed consent.
🧠 Respect digital labor.
🚫 Stop surveillance.
We, the Data Labelers Association, stand for dignity, consent, and accountability in AI.
👉 datalabelers.org
#Worldcoin
5/6
The Worldcoin ruling is a signal:
🛑 No more opaque data collection
🛑 No more exploitation of low-income workers
🛑 No more secret monitoring tools
We need enforceable standards for data ethics and labor protections in AI development.
#EthicalAI #FairWork
4/6
To make it worse: many platforms install covert monitoring software on annotators' devices—watching clicks, screens, even personal data—without clear consent.
That’s surveillance, not productivity tracking.
#Spyware #DigitalExploitation
3/6
Data annotators worldwide work on facial scans, surveillance footage, LIDAR, and more—without knowing how the data will be used.
We label, transcribe, and annotate the world—yet we're rarely told why, for whom, or with what impact.
#DataLabelers #InvisibleLabor
2/6
Worldcoin used high-tech orbs to scan irises in exchange for crypto—without full disclosure or consent. The court ruled this violated Kenya’s Data Protection Act.
This isn’t just about one company. It’s about how data is collected, stored, and abused.
#DigitalSovereignty
Kenya’s High Court has ordered Worldcoin to delete all biometric data collected in the country. A win for data privacy—but what does it mean for the rest of us working in the AI pipeline?
#Worldcoin #DataPrivacy #DeleteMyData
Celebrating the hands behind AI this Labour Day in Kenya. Data labelers—the invisible architects—deserve fair pay, mental health support, and real recognition. Join the movement with the Data Labelers Association. #LabourDay #InvisibleArchitects #FairWorkAI
Shoutout to Mercy Mutemi for the big up on DLA! We truly appreciate the recognition and continued support in pushing for fair and dignified digital work. Let’s keep the momentum going!
#DLA #FairWork #DigitalJustice #OnlineWorkMatters
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
