At the University of Houston, a cluster of tents sprouted up on the central lawn, surrounded by plywood pallets and keffiyeh-clad students. But what the protesters didn't know was that their university had contracted with Dataminr, an artificial intelligence company with a questionable track record, to gather open-source intelligence on them.
Dataminr's AI tool, "First Alert," used social media activity and chat logs to identify potential incidents of concern, sending alerts directly to university administrators. The first alert came from a Telegram channel called "Ghosts of Palestine," where students had chatted about their demands for an end to genocide in Gaza. First Alert flagged it as an incident of concern and forwarded the information to university officials.
This use of AI-powered surveillance raises serious concerns about free speech and the role of corporations in higher education. Universities, self-proclaimed safe havens of expression, have been using private partners to surveil their students' dissent. The University of Connecticut, for example, used Datminr's First Alert to monitor student protests, even going so far as to watch protesters sleep.
The trend is not unique to the University of Houston or UConn; numerous universities across the US have employed similar practices, using open-source intelligence to map out planned demonstrations and gather information on students. The use of corporate partners in surveillance has been criticized by experts, who argue that it creates an unsafe environment, chills speech, and destroys trust between students, faculty, and administrators.
The University of Houston's use of Datminr highlights the dangers of relying on AI-powered surveillance to monitor student protests. The company's record on constitutional rights is troubling, with past involvement in domestic surveillance of Black Lives Matter protesters and abortion rights activists.
As Emily Tucker, executive director of the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law, noted, "Institutions that are supposed to be for the public good are these corporate products that make them into vehicles for wealth extraction via data products." Universities have become increasingly corporatized, using data collection as a means of extracting value from their students.
The consequences of this trend are far-reaching. Students who spoke with The Intercept reported feeling chilled by the surveillance, leading some to limit communication about potential demonstrations or use secure messaging channels. For others, the experience was a wake-up call, highlighting the need for digital security measures.
As Tariq Kenney-Shawa, US Policy Fellow at Al-Shabaka, noted, "These universities are the epicenter of the future generation of Americans, future policy makers." The use of surveillance to monitor student protests undermines this mission, silencing dissent and chilling free speech.
Dataminr's AI tool, "First Alert," used social media activity and chat logs to identify potential incidents of concern, sending alerts directly to university administrators. The first alert came from a Telegram channel called "Ghosts of Palestine," where students had chatted about their demands for an end to genocide in Gaza. First Alert flagged it as an incident of concern and forwarded the information to university officials.
This use of AI-powered surveillance raises serious concerns about free speech and the role of corporations in higher education. Universities, self-proclaimed safe havens of expression, have been using private partners to surveil their students' dissent. The University of Connecticut, for example, used Datminr's First Alert to monitor student protests, even going so far as to watch protesters sleep.
The trend is not unique to the University of Houston or UConn; numerous universities across the US have employed similar practices, using open-source intelligence to map out planned demonstrations and gather information on students. The use of corporate partners in surveillance has been criticized by experts, who argue that it creates an unsafe environment, chills speech, and destroys trust between students, faculty, and administrators.
The University of Houston's use of Datminr highlights the dangers of relying on AI-powered surveillance to monitor student protests. The company's record on constitutional rights is troubling, with past involvement in domestic surveillance of Black Lives Matter protesters and abortion rights activists.
As Emily Tucker, executive director of the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law, noted, "Institutions that are supposed to be for the public good are these corporate products that make them into vehicles for wealth extraction via data products." Universities have become increasingly corporatized, using data collection as a means of extracting value from their students.
The consequences of this trend are far-reaching. Students who spoke with The Intercept reported feeling chilled by the surveillance, leading some to limit communication about potential demonstrations or use secure messaging channels. For others, the experience was a wake-up call, highlighting the need for digital security measures.
As Tariq Kenney-Shawa, US Policy Fellow at Al-Shabaka, noted, "These universities are the epicenter of the future generation of Americans, future policy makers." The use of surveillance to monitor student protests undermines this mission, silencing dissent and chilling free speech.
This is so messed up! I mean, our universities are supposed to be spaces where we can express ourselves freely, but now it seems like they're being used as corporate tools to spy on us. The fact that Datminr was hired by the university without even informing students is a major red flag 
. It's like, what's next? Are they going to start monitoring our online activity outside of school too?
Just had to look into this thing with Dataminr... so basically, they're using AI to snoop on students protesting at uni 
. Like, who gives their company access to that info? University's got a contract with them, but isn't that kinda like giving corporate interests control over free speech? 
Anyway, there are some experts saying it's a big no-no and can create a super chill environment for students 
. Like, if you're planning a protest, do you wanna be monitored by a company with a sketchy past? 
its like dataminr has some kinda 6th sense for findin out when students are about to protest or somethin
its soooo messed up
corporations just wanna exploit us for our data and make a buck off our student fees 
it aint right lol universities r supposed 2 be safe spaces but now theyre more like corporate spyware 
. It's like, we're talking about the future leaders of this country here, and we can't even trust them with their own freedom of speech? 
. Something needs to change, stat! 
. Now, it seems like universities are getting into bed with corporate partners who have questionable track records. It's like they're trading student safety for a profit 
. What happened to the days of peaceful protests and open dialogue? 
. And what's even crazier is that universities are paying these corporations for this info 
. And it's not just about the protests, either - what about all the other stuff that happens on campus? Do they get monitored too? It's like, the less I know about what's going on, the better 
? This is just some wild stuff that needs to be talked about more 