TikTok boss defends AI use as over 400 content moderator jobs face being axed

TikTok recently announced that up to 85% of the content removed for violating its Community Guidelines is identified and taken down without requiring any human input.

Mr Law explained how the models are becoming increasingly sophisticated, which allows the technology to understand the context of videos when determining how appropriate they are for the platform.

"A great example is being able to identify a weapon."

Although in the past, AI moderators would have been able to identify a knife, he said newer models can determine the context - whether they are used in a cooking video or in a violent encounter, for example.

"We set a high benchmark when it comes to rolling out new moderation technology," said Mr Law.

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"We also make sure the changes are introduced on a gradual basis with human oversight so that if there isn't a level of delivery in line with what we expect, we can address that."

As a consequence of this advancing AI, fewer people are required to moderate the content manually.

But as a result, many employees feel their livelihoods are at risk, with over 400 moderator jobs expected to be axed in London alone, according to reports.

Despite the transition to AI, Mr Law stressed that the focus of the company remains on outcomes, and particularly on the public safety of young people.

He said that as a parent himself, he understood the concern from parents and the general public at the changes, but offered reassurances that this was a step in the right direction.

"Our focus is on making sure the platform is as safe as possible.

"We will make deployments of the most advanced technology in order to achieve that, working with the many thousands of trust and safety professionals that we will have at TikTok around the world on an ongoing basis."

The discussion follows increasing concerns over the safety of young people on the social media website. In October, the Chairman of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee wrote to the platform to raise concerns about the content moderation process on the site.

In response to this letter, TikTok emphasised that evidence suggested the proposed job cuts would improve the “efficacy of moderation” by using AI, third-party specialists and more closely localised teams - despite not sharing any data or its risk assessment with the Committee Chair.

Concerns over this AI-expansion come particularly after several reports were released that suggest AI chatbots including ChatGPT and Character.AI had encouraged suicide, harm, or sexual interactions with young users, raising questions about the role AI should have in keeping online platforms safe.

Speaking about the government probe, committee chair Dame Chi Onwurah, said she was concerned over the lack of supporting evidence supplies by the social media giant to support the upcoming changes and job losses.

 “TikTok’s response represents a commitment to reducing staffing levels in favour of increasing the use of AI to moderate content on its platform. But TikTok have come up empty to show that this transition to AI won’t lead to more harms for its users.

"This is deeply concerning, as the Committee has heard time and time again – from TikTok itself and many others – that there are limitations to AI moderation.  

“Not only this, reports of AI causing harm by advising people on how to do things such as commit suicide show that the technology just isn’t reliable or safe enough to take on work like this.

There is a real risk to the lives of TikTok users."