logo
TikTok Germany moderators raise alarm over layoff plans

TikTok Germany moderators raise alarm over layoff plans

Time of India5 days ago
Berlin: Content moderators at the German branch of social media giant TikTok sounded the alarm Thursday about what they say is a plan to replace them with artificial intelligence, potentially putting platform users at risk.Around 50 people gathered for a protest near the offices of TikTok Germany, among them some of the 150-strong "trust and safety" department in Berlin, who say management are threatening to fire them en masse.Holding a banner reading "we trained your machines, pay us what we deserve", the protestors said TikTok had already overseen one round of layoffs last year and demanded it reverse plans to fully close the department.
The content moderators are tasked with keeping content such as hate speech, misinformation and pornography off the platform, which claimed more than 20 million users in Germany as of late 2023.
The row in Germany comes amid a global trend of social media companies reducing their use of human fact-checkers and turning to AI instead.
In October, TikTok -- which has 1.5 billion users worldwide and is a division of Chinese tech giant ByteDance -- announced hundreds of job losses worldwide as part of a shift to AI-assisted content moderation.
TikTok did not reply to an AFP request for comment.
The moderators at TikTok Germany are being supported by the union ver.di, who say that the company has refused to negotiate and that strike action is being prepared if this continues.
One of the moderators, 32-year-old Benjamin Karkowski, said that staff had been "shocked" when they learned of TikTok's current plans via a message from management.
Another one of the moderators, 36-year-old Sara Tegge, says that the artificial intelligence used by the company "cannot tell whether content discriminates against certain groups and it can't judge the danger of certain content".
She cited an example in which the AI flagged innocuous content about Berlin's annual LGBT+ pride as breaking TikTok's guidelines on political protests.
If the company moves ahead with its plans she "certainly fears" users may be exposed to greater danger.
Showing support at Thursday's demonstration was Werner Graf, leader of the Green party's lawmakers in Berlin's state assembly.
"These people have been fighting so that the the internet isn't permanently overwhelmed" with "fake news and hate speech", he said.
"We in the political arena must make clear that checking content... can't simply be left up to AI, we must legislate to make sure it's done by humans," he went on.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Hong Kong judge rules in favor of transgender bathroom access
Hong Kong judge rules in favor of transgender bathroom access

Indian Express

time19 minutes ago

  • Indian Express

Hong Kong judge rules in favor of transgender bathroom access

A Hong Kong judge on Wednesday ruled to strike down regulations criminalizing the use of bathrooms designated for the opposite sex, ruling in favor of transgender individuals' rights to access public toilets matching their identity. Judge Russell Coleman approved the judicial review of K, who was born a woman and identifies as a man, saying the regulations contravene an article of the city's mini-constitution that stipulates all residents should be equal before the law. But he suspended the declaration to strike down the regulations for a year to allow the government 'to consider whether it wishes to implement a way to deal with the contravention.' He said in the judgement that the regulations and 'drawing the line of a person's biological sex at birth create a disproportionate and unnecessary intrusion into the privacy and equality rights.' The ruling marks another step forward in recognizing the rights of LGBTQ+ people in the Chinese financial hub. In recent years, the government has revised policies following activists' wins in legal challenges. Currently, only children under 5 years old accompanied by an opposite sex adult can enter a public washroom designated for the opposite sex. Those violating the rule face a fine of up to 2,000 Hong Kong dollars (about $255). K launched a legal challenge in 2022, seeking to expand the exemption to pre-operative transgender people who have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria and have a medical need to undergo the process of living in their identified gender. He argued that his constitutional rights were infringed by the prohibition against him using public toilets allocated for men, the court heard. The government did not immediately comment. Quarks, a group serving transgender youth in Hong Kong, welcomed the ruling, urging officials to take immediate action to rectify what it called long-standing discrimination in the system. 'The ruling is not just an affirmation of transgender rights legally but also a big step forward for Hong Kong's overall human rights development,' it said on Instagram. In 2023, Hong Kong's top court ruled that full sex reassignment surgery should not be a prerequisite for transgender people to have their gender changed on their official identity cards. The next year, the government revised its policy to allow people who have not completed full gender-affirmation surgery to change their genders on ID cards as long as they fulfill certain conditions. The conditions include the removal of breasts for transgender men, the removal of the penis and testes for transgender women, and having undergone continuous hormonal treatment for at least two years before applying. Applicants also have to continue their hormonal treatment and submit blood test reports for random checks upon the government's request. In April, activist Henry Tse, who won the legal battle in 2023 and received his new ID card reflecting his gender change last year, lodged a fresh legal challenge over the new requirements.

Trump says China trip is 'not too distant' as trade tensions ease
Trump says China trip is 'not too distant' as trade tensions ease

The Hindu

time19 minutes ago

  • The Hindu

Trump says China trip is 'not too distant' as trade tensions ease

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday (July 22, 2025) said a trip to China might be 'not too distant,' raising prospects that the leaders of the world's two largest economies may meet soon to help reset relations after moving to climb down from a trade war. Mr. Trump made the remarks while hosting Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House, where he praised the 'fantastic military relationship' with Manila as the U.S. looks to counter China's influence in the Indo-Pacific region. Yet, Mr. Trump still said the U.S. is 'getting along with China very well. We have a very good relationship." He added that Beijing has resumed shipping to the U.S. 'record numbers' of much-needed rare earth magnets, which are used in iPhones and other high-tech products like electric vehicles. Also Read | Trump says China can continue to buy Iranian oil Widely speculated about since Mr. Trump returned to the White House, a summit between Mr. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would be expected to stabilize — even for a short while — a difficult relationship defined by mistrust and competition. Beijing believes a leader-level summit is necessary to steady U.S.-China relations and that Mr. Trump must be wooed because he has the final say on America's policy toward China, despite more hawkish voices in his Cabinet, observers say. The question, however, is when. Danny Russel, a distinguished fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said Mr. Trump has consistently shown his hunger for a visit to China and that Beijing has used that to bolster leverage. 'As soon as the leadership in Beijing is satisfied that Trump will be on his best behaviour and will accept terms for a deal that they think are favorable, they will give a green light to the visit,' Mr. Russel said. Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Washington-based think tank Stimson Center, said a visit 'is in the making' with two sides likely to strike a trade deal. What Trump said might mean the visit would not be in September but "potentially November, but still depends on whether they play ball on trade and other things we want," Mr. Sun said. Trump's campaign to impose tariffs on other countries kicked off a high-stake trade war with Beijing. China raised tariffs on U.S. goods to 125% in response to Trump's hiking the tax on Chinese goods to 145%. Both sides also imposed on each other harsh trade restrictions on critical products: China on rare earths, and the U.S. on computing chips and jet engine technology. Trade tensions, however, eased following two rounds of high-level talks in Geneva and London, when the two sides agreed to lower tariffs — pending a more permanent deal by mid-August — and pull back on trade restrictions. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday on Fox Business' 'Mornings with Maria' that he will be meeting with his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm next week to work on 'what is likely an extension' of the Aug. 12 deadline. 'I think trade is in a very good place with China," Bessent told host Maria Bartiromo. 'Hopefully, we can see the Chinese pull back on some of this glut of manufacturing that they're doing and concentrate on building a consumer economy.' He said he also expects to bring up China's purchases of Russian and Iranian oil and Beijing's role in aiding Moscow in its war against Ukraine. Beijing has not announced any travel plans for Vice Premier He Lifeng, who led trade negotiations in both Geneva and London on behalf of the Chinese government, but it is not unusual for China to make such announcements closer to a travel date. In a possible friendly gesture, Beijing on Tuesday said it suspended an antitrust investigation into chemical maker DuPont's operations in China. China's State Administration for Market Regulation made the announcement in a one-line statement but gave no explanation for the decision. DuPont said in a statement that it is 'pleased" with China's action. Chinese regulators launched the investigation in April against DuPont China Group, a subsidiary of the chemical giant, as part of Beijing's broad, retaliatory response to Trump's sky-high tariffs. Beijing also has agreed to approve export permits for rare earth elements and rare earth magnets that U.S. manufacturers need to build cars, robots, wind turbines and other high-tech products. The U.S. has eased restrictions on some advanced chips and other technologies.

HK Arrests 18-Year-Old for Writing ‘Seditious Words' in Bathroom
HK Arrests 18-Year-Old for Writing ‘Seditious Words' in Bathroom

Mint

time19 minutes ago

  • Mint

HK Arrests 18-Year-Old for Writing ‘Seditious Words' in Bathroom

(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong police arrested an 18-year-old on suspicion he left what they called 'seditious' messages in a bathroom, adding to a recent series of national security actions that signal authorities' continued efforts to curb dissent. The man is accused of being 'involved in writing seditious words in a commercial building toilet on three separate occasions,' the government said Wednesday. The content allegedly provoked hatred and disaffection against the government and incited others to defy the law. The move is the latest in a flurry of enforcement actions against perceived threats to the Chinese state in the former British colony. Hong Kong is seeking to burnish its status as a finance hub after its image took a hit from strict pandemic controls and clampdown on political freedoms. Earlier this month police arrested four men for allegedly advocating independence for the semi-autonomous Chinese territory. In June, local authorities took their first known joint operation with Beijing's security officers to investigate a case of alleged foreign collusion. Police also banned a Taiwanese video game that month for allegedly calling for armed revolution. In its Wednesday statement, the National Security Department of the police charged the man for carrying out 'with a seditious intention an act or acts that had a seditious intention,' a crime that's punishable by up to seven years of imprisonment on first conviction. The offense is defined in the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, commonly known as Article 23, which was fast-tracked into domestic law last year. It's been invoked in addition to the Beijing-imposed National Security Law of 2020, which authorities used to detain and imprison dozens of leading democracy activists. The Hong Kong government didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. More stories like this are available on

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store