Recently attempting to apply for a passport online, New Zealander Richard Lee was denied his application because the A.I. couldn’t determine that is eyes were opened.
The online passport system in New Zealand is programmed to look for a number of possible issues with an uploaded passport photograph. However, apparently this became a serious issue for Mr Lee, and after attempting three different pictures he eventually gave up and went to request assistance in person.
The help desk was less than helpful. According to Robert Lee, the New Zealand passport office said, “…it was the shadow in my eyes and the uneven lighting on the face makes it hard for the software to process,”.
The official statement from a New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs spokesman deny there is any discrimination, and that up to 20% of photos are rejected for many different reasons.
Robert Lee is taking it all in stride, “I fell off my chair laughing. Like, I know I have small eyes and I have no problem with it. But the fact that a computer can notice as well, that’s just hilarious. (I’m) actually quite impressed that in the past 80 years we’ve gone from Turing machines to this software that can read a human face,” Lee said.
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