The threats to civil rights from algorithmic tenant-screening systems

As the demand for housing continues to rise, landlords are increasingly taking advantage of artificial intelligence to review applications from prospective tenants. These AI tenant-screening systems are already being used to process rental applications; they’re running criminal background checks, assessing eviction history, and pulling credit scores. And just like other AI systems, these automated tenant-screening systems can discriminate against people in a number of ways:

1. AI tenant-screening systems can’t understand context, weigh individuals’ circumstances, or account for systemic discrimination.
2. AI tenant screening systems can make confident mistakes—authoritatively presenting inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated data as legitimate.
3. Current laws to protect prospective renters against discrimination, disparate impact, and errors made by tenant-screening systems weren’t made with AI in mind.