Apple Sued Over Racial Bias: Given its size, Apple is no stranger to lawsuits, and the company is now facing a legal complaint as the Apple Watch is the latest consumer tech product to come under fire for perpetuating racial biases, representing one part of a wider tech industry issue that revolves around racist and sexist AIs and racially insensitive practices. The Cupertino-based giant has been hit with a class action lawsuit in the Southern District of New York. The brand is facing a legal dispute over its smartwatch allegedly having a racial bias toward darker tones for its blood oximeter health feature.
According to the documents, a New Yorker named Alex Morales is claiming that the Apple Watch that he purchased over a year ago is "purported to measure blood oxygen levels and he believed it did this without regard to skin tone which was relevant to him based on his skin tone."
Morales stated that he "expected the product would not incorporate biases and defects of pulse oximetry with respect to persons of darker skin tone" and "as a result of the false and misleading representations, the product is sold at a premium price, approximately no less than $400, excluding tax and sales."
Apple introduced the Blood Oxygen feature with the Apple Watch Series 6 in 2020, with it being able to "measure the oxygen level of your blood on-demand directly from your wrist," according to Apple.
As per a report by The New York Post, the lawsuit also alleges that during the coronavirus pandemic, researchers used patients' records to confirm the clinical significance of racial bias in pulse oximetry, and for decades there have been reports that such devices were significantly less accurate in measuring blood oxygen levels based on skin color."
The New York Post reports that Apple has not yet issued a comment on the lawsuit. However, the company notes on its website that the Blood Oxygen app is "only designed for general fitness and wellness purposes."
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