https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10523739/Clearview-AI-seeking-100-billion-photos-facial-recognition-database.html
A controversial AI company has announced it aims to put an image of nearly every human face in its facial recognition database, making it possible for 'almost everyone in the world [to] be identifiable.'
In its latest report in December, facial recognition firm Clearview AI told investors that the company is currently collecting 100 billion photos of human faces for the unprecedented campaign, which will be stored in its dedicated database.
The collection of images - approximately 14 photos for each of the 7 billion people on the entire planet, scraped from social media and other sources - would extensively bolster the company's extensive surveillance system, already the most elaborate of its kind.
The American company headquartered in Manhattan further told investors that its 'index of faces' has grown from 3 billion images to more than 10 billion since the start of 2020.
The firm's technology has already been used by myriad law enforcement and government agencies around the world, helping police make thousands of arrests by aiding in various criminal investigations.
Clearview fills its database by scouring sources like Facebook, YouTube, Venmo and millions of other sites, according to the company.
The company, founded in 2016 by Australian CEO Hoan Ton-That, 34 - and currently valued at more than $100 million - is seeking to expand its facial recognition empire beyond law enforcement.
Clearview AI was founded in 2016 by Hoan Ton-That, a 31-year-old Australian tech entrepreneur and one-time model.
Ton-That co-founded the company with Richard Schwartz, an aide to Rudy Giuliani when he was mayor of New York.
It is backed financially by Peter Thiel, a venture capitalist who co-founded PayPal and was an early investor in Facebook.