Fauxtomation strikes again
So the $20,000 humanoid robot housekeeper actually just webcams your house to a random person in a call center with an Xbox controller www.wsj.com/tech/persona... @joannastern.bsky.social
I Tried the Robot That’s Coming to Live With You. It’s Still Part Human.
1X’s Neo wants to be your housekeeper. First, it needs to be controlled by a human in your home. Cool with you?
www.wsj.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:44 AM
Fauxtomation strikes again
new levels of fauxtomation on the heels of tesla announcing that they’ll use human drivers in their “robotaxis”
So apparently, it may turn out that The Wizard of Oz at the Las Vegas Sphere wasn’t entirely made in AI and Google threw the VFX crew under the bus by claiming it was all done by artificial intelligence.
If true, then fucking yikes.
If true, then fucking yikes.
August 5, 2025 at 1:54 PM
new levels of fauxtomation on the heels of tesla announcing that they’ll use human drivers in their “robotaxis”
Fauxtomation hits again
October 29, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Fauxtomation hits again
i've heard this called a Mechanical Turk - fauxtomation is more helpfully descriptive tho :)
April 23, 2024 at 8:23 PM
i've heard this called a Mechanical Turk - fauxtomation is more helpfully descriptive tho :)
Fauxtomation “hides the human work and falsely inflates the value of the ‘automated’ solution,” says Irina Raicu. Some great examples in this article of false advertisement... My favourite is the "AI" who was a human and made Carlin-style jokes.
#AIethics
www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...
#AIethics
www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...
Is There a Human Hiding behind That Robot or AI? A Brief History of Automatons That Were Actually People
When human labor is hidden under the veneer of a robot or AI tool, that’s “fauxtomation”
www.scientificamerican.com
April 25, 2024 at 9:00 PM
Fauxtomation “hides the human work and falsely inflates the value of the ‘automated’ solution,” says Irina Raicu. Some great examples in this article of false advertisement... My favourite is the "AI" who was a human and made Carlin-style jokes.
#AIethics
www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...
#AIethics
www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...
Fauxtomation strikes again.
Meta's new bonkers acquisition, Scale AI, is a glorified data labeling company, blessed with what it takes to win in this world: a myth-making and sociopathic CEO. Gig workers are predictably on the losing end of the deal.
time.com/7293552/meta...
Meta's new bonkers acquisition, Scale AI, is a glorified data labeling company, blessed with what it takes to win in this world: a myth-making and sociopathic CEO. Gig workers are predictably on the losing end of the deal.
time.com/7293552/meta...
June 17, 2025 at 2:20 AM
Fauxtomation strikes again.
Meta's new bonkers acquisition, Scale AI, is a glorified data labeling company, blessed with what it takes to win in this world: a myth-making and sociopathic CEO. Gig workers are predictably on the losing end of the deal.
time.com/7293552/meta...
Meta's new bonkers acquisition, Scale AI, is a glorified data labeling company, blessed with what it takes to win in this world: a myth-making and sociopathic CEO. Gig workers are predictably on the losing end of the deal.
time.com/7293552/meta...
New CBS doc 🎥 on AI automation, oversight, labelling, ‚consciousness‘ etc = human labour #fauxtomation #exploitation
www.cbsnews.com/news/labeler...
www.cbsnews.com/news/labeler...
Labelers training AI say they're overworked, underpaid and exploited by big American tech companies
Digital workers in Kenya had to sift through horrific online content to train AI, but say they were underpaid, overworked, and got inadequate mental health support. So they're fighting back.
www.cbsnews.com
November 26, 2024 at 7:44 AM
New CBS doc 🎥 on AI automation, oversight, labelling, ‚consciousness‘ etc = human labour #fauxtomation #exploitation
www.cbsnews.com/news/labeler...
www.cbsnews.com/news/labeler...
“In recent months the hype around generative AI has created exciting new opportunities for people to mask workaday human labor under a shiny, PR-friendly veneer of fauxtomation.”
(Pretty sure it was Astra Taylor who coined the term, but article doesn’t give attribution)
(Pretty sure it was Astra Taylor who coined the term, but article doesn’t give attribution)
Is There a Human Hiding behind That Robot or AI?
When human labor is hidden under the veneer of a robot or AI tool, that’s “fauxtomation”
www.scientificamerican.com
April 23, 2024 at 12:21 PM
“In recent months the hype around generative AI has created exciting new opportunities for people to mask workaday human labor under a shiny, PR-friendly veneer of fauxtomation.”
(Pretty sure it was Astra Taylor who coined the term, but article doesn’t give attribution)
(Pretty sure it was Astra Taylor who coined the term, but article doesn’t give attribution)
Pay No Attention to the Person behind the Algorithm: A Brief History of Automatons (e.g. AI) That Were Actually People www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t... #artificialintelligence #fauxtomation
Is There a Human Hiding behind That Robot or AI?
When human labor is hidden under the veneer of a robot or AI tool, that’s “fauxtomation”
www.scientificamerican.com
April 23, 2024 at 1:38 PM
Pay No Attention to the Person behind the Algorithm: A Brief History of Automatons (e.g. AI) That Were Actually People www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t... #artificialintelligence #fauxtomation
Fauxtomation: the process that renders invisible human labour to maintain the illusion that machines and systems are smarter than they are
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
The Automation Charade
Finding the human in the machine.
logicmag.io
June 17, 2025 at 2:22 AM
Fauxtomation: the process that renders invisible human labour to maintain the illusion that machines and systems are smarter than they are
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
te rest of the actual work (cooking the food) is done by underpaid people.
look up "fauxtomation", a lot of interesting discoveries await you
look up "fauxtomation", a lot of interesting discoveries await you
January 13, 2025 at 10:20 AM
te rest of the actual work (cooking the food) is done by underpaid people.
look up "fauxtomation", a lot of interesting discoveries await you
look up "fauxtomation", a lot of interesting discoveries await you
My comment is "The headline is wrong. We already have enough crap automation/fauxtomation fucking up people's lives for the benefit of 8 billionaires (*), and we not need more that is even worse for global warming."
(*) reference: @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social
(*) reference: @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social
May 17, 2024 at 3:32 PM
My comment is "The headline is wrong. We already have enough crap automation/fauxtomation fucking up people's lives for the benefit of 8 billionaires (*), and we not need more that is even worse for global warming."
(*) reference: @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social
(*) reference: @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social
What I call "fauxtomation" strikes again.
Supposedly self-driving cars "were supported by a vast operations staff."
1.5 workers per vehicle intervened to assist every 2.5 to five miles, according to two people familiar with is operations.
www.nytimes.com/2023/11/03/t...
Supposedly self-driving cars "were supported by a vast operations staff."
1.5 workers per vehicle intervened to assist every 2.5 to five miles, according to two people familiar with is operations.
www.nytimes.com/2023/11/03/t...
G.M.’s Cruise Moved Fast in the Driverless Race. It Got Ugly.
Cruise has hired a law firm to investigate how it responded to regulators, as its cars sit idle and questions grow about its C.E.O.’s expansion plans.
www.nytimes.com
November 6, 2023 at 3:38 PM
What I call "fauxtomation" strikes again.
Supposedly self-driving cars "were supported by a vast operations staff."
1.5 workers per vehicle intervened to assist every 2.5 to five miles, according to two people familiar with is operations.
www.nytimes.com/2023/11/03/t...
Supposedly self-driving cars "were supported by a vast operations staff."
1.5 workers per vehicle intervened to assist every 2.5 to five miles, according to two people familiar with is operations.
www.nytimes.com/2023/11/03/t...
seeking recs for a short-ish #sts (or adjacent) piece that makes a case for taking genAI seriously (not uncritically) as a technical phenomenon with meaningful potentials; this would be to pair with Astra Taylor's fauxtomation piece for an undergrad class. cc @jcalpickard
January 8, 2025 at 4:57 PM
seeking recs for a short-ish #sts (or adjacent) piece that makes a case for taking genAI seriously (not uncritically) as a technical phenomenon with meaningful potentials; this would be to pair with Astra Taylor's fauxtomation piece for an undergrad class. cc @jcalpickard
polled the class on if/how they wanted to use generative AI for coursework, after an intro to 'potemkin AI,' 'fauxtomation' and tech determinism. many don't use it and don't want to, due to a range of concerns (enviro, ethical, etc.)
August 31, 2023 at 5:23 PM
polled the class on if/how they wanted to use generative AI for coursework, after an intro to 'potemkin AI,' 'fauxtomation' and tech determinism. many don't use it and don't want to, due to a range of concerns (enviro, ethical, etc.)
A great neologism 'fauxtomation' (akin to mechanical turk) #philtech
Fauxtomation “hides the human work and falsely inflates the value of the ‘automated’ solution,” says Irina Raicu. Some great examples in this article of false advertisement... My favourite is the "AI" who was a human and made Carlin-style jokes.
#AIethics
www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...
#AIethics
www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-t...
Is There a Human Hiding behind That Robot or AI? A Brief History of Automatons That Were Actually People
When human labor is hidden under the veneer of a robot or AI tool, that’s “fauxtomation”
www.scientificamerican.com
April 25, 2024 at 10:40 PM
A great neologism 'fauxtomation' (akin to mechanical turk) #philtech
On luddism, sabotage, "AI" and the contemporary conditions of automation/fauxtomation... A good read!
thenib.com/im-a-luddite/
thenib.com/im-a-luddite/
I’m a Luddite (and So Can You!) | The Nib
What the Luddites can teach us about resisting an automated future.
thenib.com
May 17, 2025 at 6:36 AM
On luddism, sabotage, "AI" and the contemporary conditions of automation/fauxtomation... A good read!
thenib.com/im-a-luddite/
thenib.com/im-a-luddite/
100% I worked for an #AI education company and they were absolutely cheap human labour to fake their #AI. (Me, I was the cheap labour).
It was the saddest thing, and radicalized me. #Fauxtomation is everywhere.
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
It was the saddest thing, and radicalized me. #Fauxtomation is everywhere.
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
The Automation Charade
Finding the human in the machine.
logicmag.io
June 3, 2025 at 6:52 PM
100% I worked for an #AI education company and they were absolutely cheap human labour to fake their #AI. (Me, I was the cheap labour).
It was the saddest thing, and radicalized me. #Fauxtomation is everywhere.
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
It was the saddest thing, and radicalized me. #Fauxtomation is everywhere.
logicmag.io/failure/the-...
Dass Zwackelmanns Magie ausgerechnet bei der manuellen Arbeit des Kartoffelschälens versagt und dadurch Themen wie Kinderarbeit, forced migration und toxische Männlichkeit erschlossen werden, ist ein Vorgriff auf Diskurse über AI und fauxtomation in der posthumanen Ära. In diesem Essay werde ich 📝
April 27, 2024 at 9:48 AM
Dass Zwackelmanns Magie ausgerechnet bei der manuellen Arbeit des Kartoffelschälens versagt und dadurch Themen wie Kinderarbeit, forced migration und toxische Männlichkeit erschlossen werden, ist ein Vorgriff auf Diskurse über AI und fauxtomation in der posthumanen Ära. In diesem Essay werde ich 📝
“Fauxtomation” is great!!
April 10, 2025 at 4:58 PM
“Fauxtomation” is great!!
Ethics & Emerging Biotechnologies Weekly Roundup - Launch Conference, Animal Consciousness, Brain Data Privacy, Research Ethics & AI for Global Health, Fauxtomation, Robot Dog Astronaut, Gene-Edited Pig Kidney Transplant, Editing for Liver Disease, + More mailchi.mp/jhu/sciencee...
Ethics & Emerging Biotechnologies Weekly Roundup
mailchi.mp
April 25, 2024 at 4:01 PM
Ethics & Emerging Biotechnologies Weekly Roundup - Launch Conference, Animal Consciousness, Brain Data Privacy, Research Ethics & AI for Global Health, Fauxtomation, Robot Dog Astronaut, Gene-Edited Pig Kidney Transplant, Editing for Liver Disease, + More mailchi.mp/jhu/sciencee...
Fauxtomation once again
This startup claimed it would take your 2D sketches and turn them into 3D models using AI "magic." It turns out that the "magic" is poorly-paid workers in the developing world.
Buzzy AI Startup for Generating 3D Models Used Cheap Human Labor
Kaedim's founder was recently in a Forbes 30 Under 30 list for the company's 2D to 3D image conversion. In some cases artists produced the work wholecloth, one source said.
www.404media.co
September 6, 2023 at 6:15 PM
Fauxtomation once again
Fauxtomation is when a company offloads labor to customers that was previously handled by employees, but presents it as a "time-saving measure"
May 27, 2025 at 11:32 AM
Fauxtomation is when a company offloads labor to customers that was previously handled by employees, but presents it as a "time-saving measure"
Aspiring to build AI that doesn't "counterfeit humanity" is a noble goal. But isn't the history of AI a history of "Deceitful Media" as Simone Natale book details? How then to realize Pasquale's 2nd law when fauxtomation is rife?
March 24, 2025 at 3:32 AM
Aspiring to build AI that doesn't "counterfeit humanity" is a noble goal. But isn't the history of AI a history of "Deceitful Media" as Simone Natale book details? How then to realize Pasquale's 2nd law when fauxtomation is rife?
„Fauxtomation“ alias „vorgetäuschte Automation“. #Twitiert aus der @SZ Wenn die #KünstlicheIntelligenz noch eher #KünstlicheDummheit ist und echte Menschen im Hintergrund braucht, damit die Kunden das nicht merken. #laberynth
January 23, 2025 at 1:09 PM
„Fauxtomation“ alias „vorgetäuschte Automation“. #Twitiert aus der @SZ Wenn die #KünstlicheIntelligenz noch eher #KünstlicheDummheit ist und echte Menschen im Hintergrund braucht, damit die Kunden das nicht merken. #laberynth