Efrén Cruz Cortés

Efrén studied the way algorithms reproduced bias and discrimination. Automated procedures were often designed to mimic the historical data humans had generated. Therefore, unintendedly, they had learned to discriminate based on class, race, gender, and other vulnerable groups. Such a phenomenon had serious consequences, as it could have led to furthering economic inequality, depriving the poor of resources, over-incarceration of people of color, etc. Efrén’s goal was to understand the dynamics of the system the algorithm belonged to and assess which structural interventions were the best actions to both avoid discrimination and accomplish the desired goal for the population of interest.