Microsoft has reiterated its ban on US police departments using generative AI for facial recognition through Azure OpenAI, the company's fully managed, enterprise-focused service for OpenAI technology.
Language added to the Azure OpenAI Terms of Service prohibits integration with the Azure OpenAI service used for facial recognition in US law enforcement, including integration with existing OpenAI image analysis models.
A separate new rule applies to all law enforcement agencies around the world, and specifically prohibits the use of real-time facial recognition technology through cell phone cameras, such as body cameras and car cameras, to attempt to identify people in unsupervised areas.
The policy change comes a week after Axon, a manufacturer of technology and weapons products for the military and law enforcement sectors, announced a new product that uses the GPT-4 model to collect audio from body cameras.
Critics are quick to point out potential problems, such as hallucinations caused by training data and racial bias.
It is not clear whether Axon uses GPT-4 through the Azure OpenAI service or whether the updated policy is in response to Axon's product launch.
OpenAI previously restricted the use of facial recognition models via its API.
The new terms give Microsoft some leeway, as the complete ban on the use of Azure OpenAI services only applies to US law enforcement agencies, not international law enforcement agencies.
The new requirements do not include the use of fixed cameras for facial recognition in controlled environments. The terms are consistent with Microsoft and OpenAI's previous approach to awarding AI-related law enforcement contracts.
Bloomberg reported in January that OpenAI was working with the Pentagon on several projects, including cybersecurity capabilities.
This contradicts the startup's previous ban on providing AI to the military.
Microsoft has proposed using its AI imaging tool DALL-E to help the Department of Defense develop software to conduct military operations, The Intercept reported.