Members of the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community in the US are living through a period of ongoing race-based attacks—most recently in nearby Half Moon Bay. 

Many of them feel that Citizen, a hyperlocal app that allows users to report and follow notifications of nearby crimes, is one of their best means of protection.

But the app has a checkered history. Citizen has long been criticized for amplifying paranoia around crime. Now that the company is actively trying to recruit users of Asian descent in the Bay Area, many of whom are elderly, experts are worried the app could actually make things worse. Read the full story.

—Lam Thuy Vo

How AI can actually be helpful in disaster response

What’s happening: We often hear big (and unrealistic) promises about the potential of AI to solve the world’s ills. But one effort from the US Department of Defense does seem to be useful: xView2, which is helping with disaster logistics and on the ground rescue missions in Turkey after the aftermath of its recent devastating earthquake.

How it works: It uses machine-learning algorithms in conjunction with satellite imagery to identify building and infrastructure damage in the disaster area and categorize its severity much faster than is possible with current methods. Read the full story.