How we learned to stop worrying and love campus surveillance(fnl.mit.edu)
257 points by cdrnsf 18 days ago | 139 comments
tl;dr: MIT installed 500+ AI-capable surveillance cameras across campus (via Ambient.ai) with minimal faculty consultation, while simultaneously cutting library journal subscriptions. In satirical protest, faculty are bedazzling the cameras with gemstones through the "IBAISBIAOMITCORPICBBTC initiative," highlighting concerns about the Panopticon effect, chilling of protest, AI bias, data sharing with law enforcement (including the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force), and potential hidden microphones that may violate Massachusetts wiretap law.
HN Discussion:
  • ↑Cynical observation that people will always work on anti-human surveillance projects for money
  • ↑Appreciation for the article's satirical tone and clever writing
  • ↑Delight at the bedazzling protest and creative acronym use by faculty
  • ↑Cameras appeared alongside Gaza protests, suggesting surveillance targets political dissent
  • ↑Historical context on MIT's culture of openness and minimal rules being eroded