Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the advertising landscape, and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is taking steps to ensure that AI is used fairly and without discrimination.
On August 19, 2023, HUD issued new guidance to help advertisers avoid the discriminatory use of AI in housing advertising.
The guidance builds on HUD’s existing regulations that prohibit discrimination in housing, and it provides specific examples of how AI can be used to discriminate against protected classes, such as race, gender, religion, and national origin.
For example, AI can be used to target ads for certain types of housing to specific groups of people based on their demographics or browsing history. This can lead to discrimination if the targeting is based on protected characteristics, such as race or gender.
HUD’s new guidance provides advertisers with a number of steps they can take to avoid the discriminatory use of AI in housing advertising. These steps include:
- Using data that is free from bias.
- Training AI models on diverse data sets.
- Testing AI models for bias.
- Providing human oversight of AI-driven advertising decisions.
HUD’s guidance is an important step in ensuring that AI is used fairly and without discrimination in housing advertising. By following HUD’s guidance, advertisers can help to create a more inclusive and equitable housing market.
Kind regards,
J. Ross
