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No, they just hired the wrong people. They employed political activists instead of real professionals which was initially great for PR. Not the best long term decision they've made.

I don’t think it’s just for PR, I think any organisation that invests heavily into the development and use of ML/AI needs wants to keep a close eye on whether the outcomes are in line with positive humanistic values.

I don’t know how these ethics professionals added value to Google. I _do_ know that repeatedly belittling your CEO and employer on a public forum might win you lots of virtue signalling points but not be constructive for the company paying you a salary.

> The whole idea of this "Ethics Board" was only ever done for PR

Probably, but this also means that they didn't hire the best people for the job, just the people who would have looked better in the position.