PhD Human Labor in the generative A.I. supply chain

26 Jan 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR)

Research Field

Cultural studies

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Netherlands

Application Deadline

18 Feb 2024 - 22:59 (UTC)

Type of Contract

Permanent

Job Status

Not Applicable

Hours Per Week

40.0

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

During the development of AI, large amounts of data must first be organized, annotated and processed, a task mostly performed by human workers. This makes human labor a critical component of the AI supply chain. These workers are sourced through digital labor platforms that are often unregulated and offer low wages, raising concerns about labor standards in AI-development. During this PhD trajectory you will study human labor as part of the AI supply chain. You will do this research as part of the pioneering Feminist Generative AI Lab, which offers an interdisciplinary environment combining artificial intelligence, design, and social sciences.

Job description
We invite applications for a fully funded PhD position in the social sciences, focusing on human labor in the generative AI supply chain. The PhD Candidate is invited to prepare and execute an independent PhD project that should include empirical research among data workers (who generate, annotate, and enrich data). In most cases, data work is performed by workers from low-income countries, who earn poverty wages. For generative AI to be ethical and fair, it should account for the fair treatment of data workers. This research leads to insights into how fair treatment might look like according to the workers themselves.

Research Context
Rapid advancements in generative AI have created enormous demand for manual data labeling and curation, tasks that are carried out by workers who are mostly invisible to the end users of AI. Data work is essential to the production and maintenance of AI-powered services. According to Tubaro et al (2020), there are three contributions data workers make to AI systems: generating and annotating data (AI preparation), verifying model output (AI verification), and by directly mimicking model behavior to produce a service (AI impersonation).

Studies focusing on data work spatial distribution highlights how AI companies in the global North outsource data work to Global South workers due to lower labor costs and advantageous labor laws. This project examines how data work is outsourced in a broad sense by examining every data work process in the AI value chain.

To date, ethical frameworks for AI have focused on important societal impacts of AI deployment, including user privacy, discrimination, and bias in AI-driven predictions and decisions. However, most frameworks for ethical AI remain silent on the role of the human labor in the development and maintenance in AI systems. Explicitly acknowledging fair treatment of data workers as a key component of ethical AI will raise the visibility of human workers among all stakeholders in the generative AI supply chain.

This part of the Feminist Generative AI Lab thus focuses on extending knowledge about human labor necessary for AI-systems to function. Such insights can inform a feminist approach of the human AI supply chain, and form the groundwork for platform design and activism.

Methodologies and Activities
The research can be conducted through case studies, a combination of qualitative and quantitative research, digital methods, and participative methods. Activities will include:

• Design an independent PhD project
• Conduct empirical research (probably also abroad)
• Translate results into theoretical and practical lessons
• Engage and develop activities with the staff and other PhDs in the Feminist Generative AI Lab
• Publish and present research results on workshops and conferences
• Communicate research findings to a broader audience
• Participate in the ESSB graduate school’s training program

Requirements
Specific Requirements

• Master’s degree in Sociology, Science and Technology Studies, Development Studies, Human Geography, Communication Studies, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field
• Training in qualitative and quantitative research methods
• Excellent verbal and writing skills in English
• Open to travel/ to conduct part of the data collection abroad
• A demonstrable interdisciplinary and collaborative orientation
• Familiarity with (generative) artificial intelligence and an interest in data feminism or feminist AI principles

This PhD position offers a unique opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge research at the intersection of social science, design, feminism, and artificial intelligence, with the potential to shape the future of inclusive and just technological landscapes. We encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds and experiences to apply.

Additional Information
Benefits

We offer you an internationally oriented and varied job in an enthusiastic team, with excellent working conditions in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU).

The start date of this position is 1 April 2024 and you will be based at Erasmus School of Social and Behavioural Sciences (ESSB). This position is for 0.8 fte - 1 fte FTE. The salary ranges from a minimum of € 2.770 to a maximum of € 3.539 gross per month on a fulltime basis (38 hours), in accordance with Scale P of the CAO-NU. The contract is entered into for the duration of one year, to be continued based on good progress and good performance with three more years, leading to a total appointment of four years.

Everything else we offer you, you can find below!

• Everything you need for a good work-life balance : the option to work from home in consultation with your manager, 41 days of paid leave with a 40 hour contract, 8% holiday pay and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and a significant discount on a subscription for our on-campus sports centre !
• Sustainable, inclusive and diverse work environment with an open culture, where you can be yourself and we pay attention to each other and to the world around us. Make the most of our bicycle budget, or join networks such as Young@EUR , FAME or QuEUR.
• Time and space for your development in the broadest sense: development days and a personal career budget , foreign exchange opportunities with most costs paid by EUR, and free access to our university library .
• Good pension with ABP that EUR contributes 2/3rds towards, discounts on various collective insurances with Zilveren Kruis Achmea, Loyalis, and Allianz, and compensation for travel, working from home and home internet use.
• Are you currently combining your job with parenthood, or do you want to do so in the future? EUR offers partially paid parental leave and fully paid additional birth leave for partners , and our campus features a daycare .
• Moving to the Netherlands for your job with EUR? Then you may be eligible for the 30%-ruling if you meet the requirements of the Belastingdienst (Dutch tax agency), and with our Dual Career Programme we will also help your partner find the right job for them.

Selection process

Please submit your application, consisting of a motivation letter and CV, before the vacancy closing date.

The selection procedure consists of 2 interviews. Interviews are expected to be held in the week number 9 and 10.

You can find more information about the EUR on our website www.eur.nl . For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof.dr. Claartje ter Hoeven via [email protected] .

We look forward to receiving your application.

Persons of all gender identities or expressions, sexual orientations, religions, ethnicities, ages, neurodiversities, functional impairments, citizenships, or any other aspect are welcome to apply and join the EUR community.

Additional comments

Feminist Generative AI Lab

The Feminist Generative AI Lab is a joint research Lab based at TU Delft and Erasmus University of Rotterdam. The Lab pioneers research at the intersection of generative AI, design, and data feminism. Recognizing the recent developments in generative AI technology and its widespread impact, the Lab addresses the ethical challenges and opportunities inherent in this transformative field through a theoretical feminist lens. A feminist approach to technology goes beyond gender. Broadly understood, it is an approach that aims for less dominating alternatives, thinks beyond binary oppositions and embraces pluralism and difference

Website for additional job details

https://www.academictransfer.com/337054/

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Erasmus University Rotterdam

Country

Netherlands

City

Rotterdam

Postal Code

3062PA

Street

Burgemeester Oudlaan 50

Geofield

Where to apply

Website

https://www.academictransfer.com/en/337054/phd-human-labor-in-the-generative-ai…

Contact

City

Rotterdam

Website

http://www.eur.nl/

Street

Burgemeester Oudlaan 50

Postal Code

3062 PA

STATUS: EXPIRED