Microsoft wants to use AI to bleep out bad words in Xbox Live party chat

mood · Oct 14, 2019

Microsoft wants to use AI to bleep out bad words in Xbox Live party chat
Speech-to-text algorithms mulled for machine-learning-based moderation
October 14, 2019
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019...-bleep-out-bad-words-in-xbox-live-party-chat/

Today, Microsoft announced that it's rolling out filters that will let Xbox Live players automatically limit the text-based messages they receive to four maturity tiers: "Friendly, Medium, Mature, and Unfiltered." That's a long-overdue feature for a major communication platform that's well over a decade old now, but not really anything new in terms of online content moderation writ large.

Ultimately our vision is to supplement our existing efforts and leverage our company efforts in AI and machine learning technology to provide filtration across all types of content on Xbox Live, delivering control to each and every individual player.
That's all a bit vague, but The Verge reports on the real thrust of that passage: an effort by the company to "tackle the challenge of voice chat toxicity on Xbox Live."

The ultimate goal, Xbox Live program manager Rob Smith told The Verge, is a system "similar to what you'd expect on broadcast TV where people are having a conversation, and in real time, we're able to detect a bad phrase and beep it out for users who don’t want to see that."
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In the meantime, Smith said an algorithm could measure an overall "level of toxicity" in group chat and hand out automatic mutings for problematic users.
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The Verge: Microsoft unveils Xbox content filters to stop the swears and toxicity

mood · Oct 29, 2021

Microsoft acquires AI-powered moderation platform Two Hat
The acquisition is meant to strengthen existing content across the Xbox platform
October 29, 2021
https://venturebeat.com/2021/10/29/microsoft-acquires-ai-powered-moderation-platform-two-hat/

Microsoft today announced that it acquired Two Hat, an AI-powered content moderation platform, for an undisclosed amount. According to Xbox product services CVP Dave McCarthy, the purchase will combine the technology, research capabilities, teams, and cloud infrastructure of both companies to serve Two Hat’s existing and new customers and “multiple product and service experiences: at Microsoft.

“For the past few years, Microsoft and Two Hat have worked together to implement proactive moderation technology into gaming and non-gaming experiences to detect and remove harmful content before it ever reaches members of our communities.”
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According to the Pew Research Center, 4 in 10 Americans have personally experienced some form of online harassment.

Today, Two Hat claims its content moderation platform — which combines AI, linguistics, and “industry-leading management best practices” — classifies, filters, and escalates more than a trillion human interactions including messages, usernames, images, and videos a month. The company also works with Canadian law enforcement to train AI to detect new child exploitative material, such as content likely to be pornographic.
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Microsoft partnership
Several years ago, Two Hat partnered with Microsoft’s Xbox team to apply its moderation technology to communities in Xbox, Minecraft, and MSN. Two Hat’s platform allows users to decide the content they’re comfortable seeing — and what they aren’t — which Priebe believes is a key differentiator compared with AI-powered moderation solutions like Sentropy and Jigsaw Labs’ Perspective API.

It’s worth noting that semi-automated moderation remains an unsolved challenge.
But McCarthy expressed confidence in the power of Two Hat’s product, which includes a user reputation system, supports 20 languages, and can automatically suspend, ban, and mute potentially abusive members of communities.
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Two Hat: We are excited to announce: Microsoft has acquired Two Hat
Microsoft: Microsoft acquires Two Hat to collaborate on online safety and digital wellness solutions for online communities

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Microsoft wants to use AI to bleep out bad words in Xbox Live party chat

mood Updates Team

mood Updates Team