Refugees living in Uganda could earn US$20 a day by helping a non-profit to train AI algorithms.

California-based tech non-profit REFUNITE is hoping that by helping to test its LevelApp – a pilot mobile application through which users label images and other data until the algorithm can detect patterns without human intervention – refugees will become empowered, the WEF reports.

Co-chief executive Chris Mikkelsen says refugees in Uganda can earn up to US$20 – versus the average US$1.25 per day for doing other menial tasks. ‘This provides refugees with a foothold in the global gig economy,’ he says, adding that the money could be used to buy livestock, and access healthcare and education.

Mikkelsen says allowing users to build digital skills ‘would give them the ability to rebuild a life and the dignity of no longer having to rely solely on charity’.

About 5 000 refugees are already involved in the pilot project. The company is also working closely with AI computing platform DeepBrain Chain, which has agreed to pay 200 refugees for a test period of six months.

4 December 2018
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