SAN FRANCISCO (REUTERS) - Alphabet Inc's Google fired staff scientist Margaret Mitchell on Friday (Feb 19), they both said, a move that fanned company divisions on academic freedom and diversity that were on display since its December dismissal of AI ethics researcher Timnit Gebru.
Google said in a statement Dr Mitchell violated the company's code of conduct and security policies by moving electronic files outside the company.
Google's ethics in artificial intelligence work has been under scrutiny since the firing of Dr Gebru, a scientist who gained prominence for exposing bias in facial analysis systems.
The dismissal prompted thousands of Google workers to protest. She and Dr Mitchell had called for more diversity among Google's research staff and expressed concern that the company was starting to censor research critical of its products.
Dr Gebru said Google fired her after she questioned an order not to publish a paper claiming AI that mimics language could hurt marginalised populations.
Dr Mitchell, a co-author of the paper, publicly criticized the company for firing Dr Gebru and undermining the credibility of her work.
The pair for about two years had co-led the ethical AI team, started by Dr Mitchell.
Google AI research director Zoubin Ghahramani and a company lawyer informed Dr Mitchell's team of her firing on Friday in a meeting called at short notice, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The person said little explanation was given for the dismissal. Google declined to comment.
The company said Mitchell's firing followed disciplinary recommendations by investigators and a review committee.
It said her violations "included the exfiltration of confidential business-sensitive documents and private data of other employees". The investigation began Jan 19.
Google employee Alex Hanna said on Twitter the company was running a "smear campaign" against Dr Mitchell and Dr Gebru, with whom she worked closely.
Google declined to comment on Mr Hanna's remarks.
Google has recruited top scientists with promises of research freedom, but the limits are tested as researchers increasingly write about the negative effects of technology and offer unflattering perspectives on their employer's products.
Reuters reported exclusively in December that Google introduced a new "sensitive topics" review last year to ensure that papers on topics such as the oil industry and content recommendation systems would not get the company into legal or regulatory trouble.
Dr Mitchell publicly expressed concern that the policy could lead to censorship.
Google reiterated to researchers in a memo and meeting on Friday that it was working to improve pre-publication review of papers.
It also announced new policies on Friday to handle sensitive departures and evaluate executives based on team diversity and inclusion.
