Pokémon Go Creator Training AI on User Data

Improve the News Foundation -

Facts

  • Niantic, the creator of the augmented reality (AR) game Pokémon Go, says it has collected over 10M location scans from players to develop a Large Geospatial Model (LGM) for artificial intelligence (AI) systems.[1][2][3]
  • While the company is upfront about the information it collects and doesn't share data with third parties, its privacy policy offers no option to disable tracking—or clarity on how the data is used.[4][3]
  • Niantic says the data it has collected is unique, emphasizing that most of it is from pedestrian locations inaccessible to vehicles. The company says the LGM it's building will navigate the physical world.[5][2]
  • In a recent blog post, the company said more than 1M scans 'are activated and available for use with our VPS [visual positioning system] service,' with roughly 1M 'fresh scans each week, each containing hundreds of discrete images.' [6][5]
  • its LGM uses global knowledge to identify unfamiliar locations, like the back of a church, by comparing shared characteristics with thousands of churches worldwide, enabling AI to navigate and comprehend physical spaces.[2]
  • While Niantic claims such data could be used for gaming, spatial planning, and logistics, critics argue that Pokémon Go players unwittingly gave their data to be used for other purposes, like military use.[6]

Sources: [1]Verge, [2]404 Media, [3]USA Today, [4]Video Games On SI, [5]Nintendo Life and [6]Forbes.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by CO/AI. While there are certainly ethical questions to be dealt with, spatial AI will revolutionize industries by enabling machines to perceive and interact with 3D environments. This will benefit every economic sector, from health care to architecture to e-commerce. With this technology, society can build upon and interact with the physical world unlike ever before.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Lunduke. Spatial intelligence firms like Niantic are much more terrifying than your typical greedy corporation. It's important to remember that Niantic's original company, Keyhole, was reportedly linked to the CIA's venture capital firm, In-Q-Tel. It is not far-fetched to assume that the US military and national security state are using private firms to track our every move.

Predictions