Authorities said Thursday that a high school athletic director in Maryland stands accused of using artificial intelligence to impersonate a principal on an audio recording.
The recording allegedly contained racist and antisemitic comments.
AI Used for Revenge
According to Baltimore County police, Dazhon Darien allegedly imitated the voice of Pikesville High School's principal Eric Eiswert following discussions about Darien's work performance and the potential renewal of his contract.
Police said there were concerns about allegations that Darien had paid his roommate $1,900 in school funds, claiming it was for coaching the girls soccer team under false pretenses.
In the documents, police stated that Darien created an audio clip that portrayed the principal expressing frustration towards Black students and their test-taking abilities.
According to The Independent, authorities have highlighted that this case is one of the first of its kind in the country, emphasizing the need for new laws to protect against this technology.
Experts have also raised concerns about the growing power of artificial intelligence, emphasizing the need for additional resources to keep up with its detection.
Marylan Athletic Director Framed up Principal for Investigating Mishandling of School Funds
There were immediate questions about the authenticity of the audio, and according to police charging documents, Darien accessed the school's network multiple times in December and January to search for OpenAI tools, as reported by The Baltimore Banner.
He supposedly used "Large Language Models" that employ "deep learning."
In the viral clip, a voice that sounds like Eiswert can be heard making derogatory comments about certain individuals who are unable to demonstrate their abilities.
The clip also highlighted the challenges of getting those students to meet grade-level expectations, as reported by the Banner.
The recording lso mentioned the names of staff members, providing explicit information on their unsuitability for their positions and suggesting that they should be terminated.
"And if I receive another complaint from someone in this community, I might just have a change of perspective," the voice also said.
The clip was said to have been shared with three teachers before it gained traction and became widely popular. According to Baltimore County Police Chief Robert McCullough, Darien is facing a range of charges, including theft, stalking, disruption of school operations, and retaliation against a witness.
Based on McCullough, Darien made the recording as a response to Eiswert's investigation into the possible mishandling of school funds.
Eiswert is still employed at the school, while Darien has chosen to resign.
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