Description: An AI program named REACH VET, designed and used by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to prevent veteran suicides, was reportedly found to prioritize white men while neglecting female veterans and survivors of military sexual trauma. This oversight persists despite rising suicide rates among these groups. The incident is an example of algorithmic bias and the exclusion of critical risk factors for female veterans.
Entities
View all entitiesAlleged: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) , AI-enabled decision support systems and REACH VET developed and deployed an AI system, which harmed Veterans , Survivors of military sexual trauma , Women and girls , Women and Emotionally vulnerable individuals.
Alleged implicated AI systems: AI-enabled decision support systems and REACH VET
Incident Stats
Risk Subdomain
A further 23 subdomains create an accessible and understandable classification of hazards and harms associated with AI
1.1. Unfair discrimination and misrepresentation
Risk Domain
The Domain Taxonomy of AI Risks classifies risks into seven AI risk domains: (1) Discrimination & toxicity, (2) Privacy & security, (3) Misinformation, (4) Malicious actors & misuse, (5) Human-computer interaction, (6) Socioeconomic & environmental harms, and (7) AI system safety, failures & limitations.
- Discrimination and Toxicity
Entity
Which, if any, entity is presented as the main cause of the risk
Human
Timing
The stage in the AI lifecycle at which the risk is presented as occurring
Post-deployment
Intent
Whether the risk is presented as occurring as an expected or unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal
Unintentional
Incident Reports
Reports Timeline
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An artificial intelligence (AI) program designed to prevent suicide among U.S. military veterans prioritizes white men and ignores survivors of sexual violence, which affects a far greater percentage of women, an investigation by The Fuller…
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Warning: This newsletter contains references to suicide throughout.
Why did the suicide rate for female veterans spike 24% in the most recent U.S. government report? That’s the question we wanted to answer.
Experts pointed to a wide range …
Variants
A "variant" is an AI incident similar to a known case—it has the same causes, harms, and AI system. Instead of listing it separately, we group it under the first reported incident. Unlike other incidents, variants do not need to have been reported outside the AIID. Learn more from the research paper.
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