Aon is one of a growing number of companies using AI to screen job applicants. It’s efficient—but are ‘racist, sexist’ systems baked in?

In 2023, when a job seeker with autism attempted to complete an automated machine-based assessment as part of the hiring process, he came to the conclusion that the test was designed to filter out people with certain disabilities.

He recalled to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that the personality assessment was full of scenario-based questions such as “I tend to avoid large groups of people,” “I don’t know why I get angry sometimes,” and “I have difficulty determining how...