Google has cancelled a contract with a contractor who helped train chatbot Bard

Google has ended its partnership with Australian firm Appen, which was involved in training data for artificial intelligence language models, including the Bard chatbot and Google's search engine.

Here's What We Know

A Google spokesperson said that the decision was made as part of optimising supply chains and improving efficiency with contractors. At the same time, Appen itself was not notified of the partnership breakup.

In addition to Google, the Australian firm helped train AI models for Microsoft, Meta and Amazon. Appen's revenue from its partnership with Google alone was expected to be $82.8 million in fiscal year 2023.

Employees of contracting firms often do routine data processing tasks for AI and are paid low wages. Previously, employees of Appen and Accenture, another Google contractor, have sought higher pay and better working conditions.

Experts note that the problem of low-paid contractor labour is relevant to the entire AI industry. For example, content moderators in Kenya sued Meta over its low hourly rate of $2.2 for reviewing inappropriate content.

Source: The Verge