Exclusive: New Global Safety Standards Aim to Protect AI’s Most Traumatized Workers

A global trade union on Thursday urged the world’s major tech companies to adopt what it says is the first set of global safety protocols for content moderators.

Content moderators are workers who remove disturbing content from social media—data which is often then used to train AI systems like ChatGPT or Facebook’s algorithms. The job comes with a high risk of trauma. According to a report released alongside the protocols, 81% of content moderators believe their employer does not do enough to support their mental health.