StreetView AI Protects Privacy of Canadian Sasquatch Statue
April 15, 2022
Here is an amusing AI edge case that could have benefitted from a helping human hand. The Vernon Morning Star reports, “Sasquatch Censored? Harrison’s Landmark Carving is Camera Shy in Google StreetView’s Eyes.” Writer Adam Louis tells us:
“Local Facebook groups were amused by a quirk of the interactive map-making technology that normally blurs the faces of people pictured in StreetView pictures. According to an observation originally posted on Twitter from CBC Vancouver municipal affairs reporter Justin McElroy, it seems the face-hiding feature also works on large wooden statues; the grinning face of the iconic Sasquatch statue that sits outside the welcome sign at the entrance of Harrison Hot Springs has also been blurred.”
Of course, automatically blurring human faces is StreetView’s default policy. It could be considered a complement to the sculptor that their work fooled the algorithm. Though that unnamed artist or other Sasquatch enthusiasts may want to see the mistake reversed, it seems to be set in stone. The write-up notes:
“While there is a link that allows users to report items for additional blurring – whether it’s a car, house or person – there does not appear to be a way to request a person or object to be un-blurred. Answers in Google Maps Help forums largely agree that once blurring is done, it’s permanent and irreversible.”
Curious readers need not travel to the Harrison River Valley to view the statue’s face, however. As of this writing, a photo of is featured at the top of the Sasquatch Trail web page.
Cynthia Murrell, April 15, 2022
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