The nonprofit iNaturalist reported it received a $1.5 million grant from Google’s charitable division to develop generative AI tools to improve species identification. This news sparked significant backlash from users who shared their concerns on multiple forums, including the iNaturalist blog. The platform allows users to share observations of organisms, typically with photos and notes. An AI function called “computer vision” proposes possible species identifications that users can confirm or broadly classify. Observations classified as “research grade” after community approval contribute to scientific research. iNaturalist mentioned that the generative AI would suggest species while offering justifications for those suggestions to enhance learning. However, users voiced worries about the environmental impact of such technology and potential inaccuracies in AI recommendations, with some threatening to delete their accounts. In response, iNaturalist recognized community concerns and assured users that human oversight in identification would continue without granting exclusive data access to Google. The executive director reinforced commitment to quality while addressing fears of inaccurate AI outputs, but doubts about the use of generative AI remained among community members.
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