The New Yorker Magazine Gets Close to a Key Precept of Google Senior Management
August 11, 2022
I suggest that anyone interested in the bizarre personnel decisions which have become as notable as Google’s amazing announcements about its technology read “Google’s Caste-Bias Problem: A Talk about Bigotry Was Cancelled Amid Accusations of Reverse Discrimination. Whom Was the Company Trying to Protect?” The article did not appear to be behind a paywall, but you may be asked to spit out some cash to read the interview.
I am not going to discuss the ins and outs of the interview, its factoids, or the motivation for the comments.
I have several observations:
- The New Yorker has identified and made visible behaviors which have been ignored by other “real” news outfits; for example, Yahoo News. (Yahoooooo!) The question is, “Why?”
- The consequences of certain decisions have been fascinating. Dr. Timnit Gebru departed and set out to do the Don Quixote thing? Blake Lemoine, the fellow who thought software was alive, is now free to share his insights on podcasts. By doing this, he highlights some of the thought process of Google professionals. Then there was the cult. I don’t want to think about that.
- The high school science management methods of the Google have certain deep roots. I am not sure if these are cultural, bro-behaviors, or some other protein firing in the carpetland crew. What’s clear is that only Meta’s management methods are in what I would call the Sergey-Larry league. Maybe it’s the water in Silicon Valley.
Net net: The New Yorker’s Delphic soothsayers are definitely on to something that business school gurus have been skirting for years.
Stephen E Arnold, August 11, 2022
Google Kicked Out of School in Denmark
August 11, 2022
Like its colleagues in Netherlands and Germany, the Denmark data protection authority has taken a stand against Google’s GDPR non-compliance. European secure-email firm Tutanota reports on its blog, “Denmark Bans Gmail and Co from Schools Due to Privacy Concerns.” Schools in the Helsingør Municipality have until August 3 to shift to a different cloud solution. We learn:
“In a statement published mid July, the Danish data protection agency expresses ‘serious criticism and bans … the use of Google Workspace’. Based on a risk assessment for the Helsingør Municipality, the data protection authority concluded that the processing of personal data of pupils does not meet the requirements of the GDPR and must, therefor, stop. The ban is effective immediately. Helsingør has until August 3 to delete pupil’s data and start using an alternative cloud solution. … This decision follows similar decisions by Dutch and German authorities. The issues that governmental institutions see themselves faced with has started with the invalidation of Privacy Shield back in 2020. Privacy Shield has been a data transferring agreement between the USA and the European Union and was supposed to make data transfers between the two legally possible. However, the agreement has been declared invalid by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in 2020 due to privacy concerns. One major problem that the EU court pointed out is that data of foreigners is not protected in the USA. The protections that are there – even if limited – only apply to US citizens.”
So the NSA can gain unfettered access to the personal data of Europeans but not US citizens. We can see how authorities in the EU might have a problem with that. As the Danish agency notes, such a loophole violates rights considered fundamental in Europe. Not surprisingly, this Tutanota write-up emphasizes the advantages of a Europe-based email service like Tutanota. It is not wrong. It seems Denmark has woken up to the Google reality. Now what about Web-search tracking?
Cynthia Murrell, August 11, 2022
Xoogler on AI Ethics at the Google: Ethics? Explain, Please
August 8, 2022
I read a write up which seems to be information I have seen cycled and recycled. Nevertheless” “An Engineer Who Was Fired by Google Says Its AI Chatbot Is Pretty Racist’ and That AI Ethics at Google Are a Fig Leaf” contains an interesting observation; to wit:
“These are just engineers, building bigger and better systems for increasing the revenue into Google with no mindset towards ethics,” Lemoine told Insider. “AI ethics is just used as a fig leaf so that Google can say, ‘Oh, we tried to make sure it’s ethical, but we had to get our quarterly earnings,'” he added.
The statement is interesting from several different vantage points:
First, the Xoogler is directing public criticism at the GOOG by linking Google’s approach to ethics to a fig leaf. The metaphor to a fig leaf. Wikipedia points out:
Some paintings and statues have the genitals of their subjects covered by a representation of an actual fig leaf or similar object, either as part of the work or added afterward for perceived modesty.
Yep, perceived modesty and the evocative idea of a cover up.
Second, the recycling of negative comments could create a target for some of Google’s legal eagles.
Third, the allegations about ethics and its possible subordinate role to achieving goals supports assertions offered by Timnit Gebru et al.
Will a burning pile of fig leaves attract attention? Unlikely. Hey, it’s the Google.
Stephen E Arnold, August 8, 2022
Google Innovates Again: Quick or Is That Semi-KWIC?
August 5, 2022
Innovation at the Googleplex never stops. Never. I read the online story “Google Updates Search Result Snippets for Queries with Quotes.” The write up reports that after more than two decades of defining Googling as searching:
Now Google will now show the quoted text in the snippet where that exact phrase appears on the page.
The idea upon which the quantumly supreme Googlers hit is that some context, not much, but some is helpful. No one has ever had this scintillating insight before. Amazing. Think about it. A person’s search for a quote returns some semi-context. I learned:
Google said they made this change based on searcher feedback, Google wrote “We’ve heard feedback that people doing quoted searches value seeing where the quoted material occurs on a page, rather than an overall description of the page. Our improvement is designed to help address this.”
A few observations? Sure, why not?
- Google ignores bound phrases and user defined phrases in quotes. Don’t you love the strike out for the key words in a query that do NOT appear in the results list? I do. Will this helpful feature be decremented or ignored?
- Key words in context has been a function for a long time. I am not motivated to dig through my 50 year archive of “search” ideas to locate the very first KWIC option. I think some of the long-forgotten online search systems offered this feature? Maybe Dialog circa 1980? Somewhere around there. I recall Carlos Cuadra talking about the function at an Information Industry Association 45 years ago. Yo, SDC experts, any thoughts?
- Is this the magic learnings of a former Verity wizard transporting inspirations to the GOOG?
- Will the Google allow the user to specify the size of the KWIC window? Sure, when Google discovers the function. What’s next? Boolean logic?
Wow. KWIC.
Stephen E Arnold, August 5, 2022
Google and Kids: The School Push Squeezes Some New Concessions… Allegedly
August 1, 2022
I read “Chrome Use Subject to Restrictions in Dutch Schools over Data Security Concerns.” The write up reports:
Several schools and other educational organizations are having to restrict usage of Google’s software, including its Chrome browser and Chrome OS offerings over security and privacy fears. The Dutch Ministry of Education has ordered the country’s education industry to implement the changes following over fears that Google’s software is in conflict with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other privacy-related regulations in the country.
I am not surprised. I noted that the article presents some familiar wordage; for example:
… The ministers discussed these issues with the representatives of Google, Microsoft, and Zoom, and that these companies assured the ministers that their future versions will be more transparent, and more compatible, with the country’s (and the EU bloc’s) privacy and data protection laws.
I like the “assured the ministers” phrase. It reminds me of “Senator, thank you for the question. I will forward the information to your office. And I am sorry, really, really sorry. We are constantly trying to improve.”
Improve what?
Well, in my opinion it is the collection of fine grained data, actionable intelligence, and insight into what those kiddies are doing. But that’s just my point of view. The giant technology firms just want to do good. No, really.
Do good.
Those assurances sparked an update to the original article and guess what?
… Chrome and Chrome OS are not banned in the education sector of the country, and that schools may continue using them provided that they perform certain actions themselves to strengthen data security and ensure student privacy.
Progress.
Stephen E Arnold, August 1, 2022
Google YouTube: Trying to Put Sand in Amazon and TikTok Product Search? Yep. Yep. Yep.
July 29, 2022
Most people don’t think too much about the impact of Amazon’s ecommerce search. It mostly works and the savvy shopper knows how to spot a third party reseller scam brand. (You do, don’t you?) Here’s a bit of anecdotal context. Amazon product search has chewed into Google search. In the post-Froogle years, Amazon sold online books. Then Amazon started adding products. With the products came reviews. Some reviews were Fiverr-type service generated but a few — the exact percentage like the number of bogus Twitter accounts — is not known.
People around the world use Amazon ecommerce search to find products, get basic information, and some useful, some misinformation about a particular product.
The impact on the Google has been significant. The number kicked around among my slightly dull research team is a decrease of 30 percent in product search in 2021. How does one know that Amazon has done more to cause pain at the Google than many know? Easy. Google took a former Verity wizard (you remember Verity, right?) and used high school reunion type pressure to get that person to indicate that Google product search was going to get a couple of steroid injections, a tummy tuck, and a butt lift. These are digital enhancements, of course. Google is not a humanoid, despite Google management’s insistence on its sentience.
“YouTube and Shopify Just Started Livestream Selling and You Should Too” explains:
YouTube just announced a partnership with Shopify.
Yep, the company that media luminary and business wizard Scott Gallagher touted for several months on a popular podcast featuring insights and school yard humor. (Was Google won over by Guru Gallagher’s blend of insight and George Carlin thinking?)
The article points out:
Social selling is the shopping experience of the future.
The write up adds a bit of color to what seems like a “next big thing.” Spoiler: It’s not.
My reaction to the write up? The most important point should be that Google is racing (possibly out of control) to find a way to stop the loss of product search clicks. Hence, TikTok me too videos with product endorsements. Hence, a deal with a modern version of Yahoo stores. Hence, a tie up to use Shopify as a war horse.
My view: Too late. Amazon, TikTok, and a handful of other product centric ecommerce services are sitting behind their revenue ramparts. Google doesn’t have the weaponry it did before the erosion became noticeable in 2006. Froogle? Froogle? Long gone. But the spirit of Verity is here to claw back the product search traffic. Exciting.
Stephen E Arnold, July 29, 2022
TikTok, TikTok: The Doomsday Clock at the Googleplex May Be Ticking
July 26, 2022
I read “Time Is Ticking for Google to Catch Up with TikTok”. The write up — which is unlikely to be greeted with cheers at the Google — says:
Google complained that almost 40% of Gen Z prefers using social apps like TikTok and Instagram for online queries instead of Google Search and Maps. Instead of complaining, perhaps Google should take the necessary steps to make valuable changes to its services to draw in its losing customer base.
The write up quotes a Verity-trained Googler as saying:
“We keep learning, over and over again, that new internet users don’t have the expectations and the mindset that we have become accustomed to,” Raghavan said. He added that younger users are making queries in an entirely different way.”
I love the royal “we.” Very King Carlos II of Spain.
The write up points out that Google is a dinobaby:
But in recent years, we changed the way we consumed content. We prefer watching videos that are short and to the point — the type of content TikTok succeeds in, and one Google is trying to catch up with.
How fast can Googzilla adapt?
TikTok, TikTok, is that the doomsday clock?
Stephen E Arnold, July 26, 2022
Googzilla Made to Look Like a Specially Enabled Dinobaby
July 25, 2022
I read “Google Gaffes: 9 Branding Misfires from the Smartest Company Around.” Two thoughts. First, we have one addled dinobaby or maybe two who are language challenged. Second, no wonder this outfit cannot manage its professional staff. Those are people. The information in the article is about services. The write up states:
From Android Automotive to YouTube Music, Google regularly misses the mark in branding its offerings
Branding? I think some synapses are shorted or incorrectly infused with logic proteins. The duplicative names and the apparently duplicated services illustrates what one might call a lack of strategic cohesion.
I won’t repeat the nine flubs. Three stand out as particularly remarkable, probably on a par with the now infamous New Coke from the friends of the dentistry world in Atlanta, Georgia. Here’s my pick of the litter:
YouTube Red, YouTube Premium, and YouTube Music and Android TV and Google TV and Google Play Movies & TV and Google TV (but not that Google TV)
Amazing. Google wants to cut costs, increase margins, pause hiring, stop hiring, publish important articles, fire authors of important articles, help creators, harm creators, sell subscriptions to YouTube, give YouTube away with amazingly irrelevant ads, etc.
This is not a high school science club effervesced with a box of free electronic components. This is a science club drunk on their ability to solve cubic equations and play Foosball. Sounds like a great place to work. I would point out that the author of the nine misfires is unlikely to land a job at Alphabet Google YouTube DeepMind. Not Googley enough to see the brilliance behind Red, Premium, Music, TV variants, Play Movies, and chat. How many chat apps and services has Google crafted?
Oh, well, dinobabies are creative.
Stephen E Arnold, July 25, 2022
Google Challenges NSO Group As PR Champ
July 23, 2022
This factoid — if true — is amazing for two reasons: [1] A glimpse of Googzilla’s Big People Operations’ procedures in action, and [2] Google may knock NSO Group off its top spot as a PR magnet for media personality-journalists.
The scoop is the property of a former Buzzfeed writer, a Davos fave, and a LinkedIn podcast personality. The artificial intelligence / machine learning expert named Blake Lemoine has been allowed by the Google to find his future elsewhere. You can read the Buzzfeed-type write up “Google Fires Blake Lemoine, Engineer Who Called Its AI Sentient” and revel in:
In his conversations with LaMDA, Lemoine discovered the system had developed a robust sense of self-awareness, expressing concern about death, a desire for protection, and a conviction that it felt emotions like happiness and sadness. Lemoine said he considers LaMDA a friend.
I like the “friend.”
Quick question: Will Mr. Lemoine be allowed to interact with the digital friend when he chases gig work or angles for a new job in the very stable, never hyped, and certainly not crazy world of artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Money and the Google business card are tough to lose. But a “friend” like LaMDA which Mr. Lemoine legitimately believes to be a person. Come on now. Alive? You know like a person whom one can take to an exhibition at the Tate?
The Engadget write up quoted an expert pundit resource as saying that Mr. Lemoine’s statements about LaMDA being alive as
On stilts. I like that because why not personify nonsense as illogical outputs as a stilt walker. On the other hand, thinking LaMDA is alive is almost as credible as the claims of cyber security companies which promise protection from bad actors. Yeah, stilts.
Let’s recap.
- Google wants to solve death and announces quantum supremacy.
- Google shows AI/ML experts the door for saying, in effect, Google’s smart software is wonky. Hasta la vista Drs. Gebru, Mitchell, and Chatterjee! [Yep, each one allowed to find their future elsewhere in the rock-solid, really credible world of AI/ML.]
- Mr. Lemoine— now a former Google AI/ML expert — asserted that Google’s smart software is alive.
- Google’s Big People Management System allegedly bids farewell to Mr. Lemoine.
- News of the termination rockets through the datasphere displacing NSO Group and Elon Musk/Twitter as the headline and PR grabber of the moment. Wow. Too bad for Pegasus and Musk I think. (Some at NSO Group and Tesla might want this Lemoine “it’s alive” confection to persist.
- A Google management case study takes shape. Lucky MBA students!
Reality or sci-fi? That’s a good question.
Stephen E Arnold, July 23, 2022
Google Play: Autosubscriber
July 22, 2022
I cam across a presentation available from the cyber firm Evina. “Autolycos” explains that one can / could download a malicious app from the Google Play Store. (How’s that smart software working to prevent this type of situation, Google? Hello, Google, are you there?)
The write up states:
In July 2022, a new malware family was discovered by top malware experts at Evina. This discovery is remarkable because new malware families are rarely detected (about once a year) and this specific new malware works in an entirely new way.
The operative word is “new.” Why is this important? Cyber security is a reactive business despite the marketing that says, “We predict threats before they do harm?” Well, marketing.
Among the malicious apps are:
- CoCo Camera
- Creative 3D Launcher
- Freeglow Camera
- Funny Camera
- GIF Keyboard
- Razer Keyboard and Theme
- VLOG Star Video Editor
- WOW Camera.
Aimed at younger folks? Sure looks that way;
The report points out:
The malware launches fraud attempts by . For some steps, it can execute urls on a remote browser and embed these results in the http requests. This operation is intended to make it harder for Google to differentiate Autolycos infected apps from legitimate ones. This is exactly why Autolycos remained unidentified for so long and reached over 3 million downloads.
The good news is that the apps appear to be popular outside the US, but there is tomorrow.
Stephen E Arnold, July 22, 2022
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