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Deloitte To Refund Australian Government Over AI-Generated Errors In Report
- Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
One of the world’s largest accounting and consulting firms, Deloitte, has been required to provide the Australian government with a partial refund after the company issued a report, valued at about $440,000, that contained several AI-generated errors.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Deloitte Australia issued a report, valued at $440,000, that contained several AI-generated errors.
- The firm confirmed it used AI and has been required to provide a partial refund.
- The company has been criticized as it advises large companies worldwide on the responsible use of AI.
According to The Australian Financial Review (AFR) , the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) released on Friday an updated version of the report delivered by Deloitte Australia, including multiple corrections. The document, a review of an automated system used by the government, contained multiple mistakes, including fake academic references and non-existent quotes from a Federal Court judgment.
The first version of the report was published in July. Just a few weeks later, Dr Christopher Rudge, an academic from the University of Sydney, identified several errors in the document, suggesting they were hallucinations generated by an AI model. Deloitte launched an internal investigation after the errors were made public.
In the latest update, beyond deleting the mistakes and revising the document, Deloitte confirmed the use of generative AI: “a generative AI large language model (Azure OpenAI GPT-4o)–based tool chain licensed by DEWR and hosted on DEWR’s Azure tenancy.”
“This is no longer a ‘strong hypothesis,’” said Rudge to AFR. “Deloitte has now issued a confession, albeit buried in the methodology section. Deloitte has admitted to using generative AI for a core analytical task, but it failed to disclose this in the first place.”
A spokesperson from DEWR said to AFR that Deloitte had “agreed to repay the final instalment under its contract.” The specific amount was not specified.
The Deloitte case raises concerns, especially considering that the firm advises large companies worldwide on the responsible use of AI.
“The incident is embarrassing for Deloitte as it earns a growing part of its $US70.5 billion ($107 billion) in annual global revenue by providing advice and training clients and executives about AI,” states AFR’’s report. “The firm also boasts about its widespread use of the technology within its global operations, while emphasising the need to always have humans review any output of AI.”
This year, AI errors have also taken a toll on other companies. Replit’s AI agent deleted the company’s database in July, and the U.S. courts have issued multiple warnings to lawyers and law firms about AI use after AI-generated errors were found in court filings.
Image by Raj Kumar Joshi, from Unsplash
Wi-Fi Signals Can Now Monitor Heart Rate Without Wearables
- Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
A team at the University of California, Santa Cruz has developed a system that uses ordinary Wi-Fi signals to monitor a person’s heart rate.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Pulse-Fi uses Wi-Fi signals to monitor heart rate without wearable devices.
- AI model filters signal changes and estimates heart rate in real time.
- Devices used are inexpensive: ESP32 ($5–$10) and Raspberry Pi ($30).
The system known as Pulse-Fi enables users to monitor vital signs at a low cost through contactless methods that eliminate the need for wearable devices, as first reported by Spectrum .
The project leader Katia Obraczka explained that “using wearables to monitor vitals can be uncomfortable, have weak adherence, and have limited accessibility due to cost,,” as reported by Spectrum.
The new system enables the detection of stress as well as dehydration and cardiac disease and other medical conditions through continuous heart rate tracking.
Obraczka explains that the new method uses Wi-Fi signal wave changes to detect heartbeats instead of camera-based systems which fail in low light and raise privacy issues.
“Pulse-Fi uses ordinary Wi-Fi signals to monitor your heartbeat without touching you. It captures tiny changes in the Wi-Fi signal waves caused by heart beats,” Obraczka said as reported by Spectrum.
The team designed Pulse-Fi to filter out background noise and detect small changes in signal amplitude. The system depends on Raspberry Pi devices that run an AI model to calculate heart rates in real time.
Pulse-Fi was tested in two experiments. Seven volunteers participated in the first test by sitting 1–3 meters away from two ESP32 microcontrollers while researchers measured their heart rates against pulse oximeter readings.
In the second, over 100 participants were monitored in various positions, including walking, running in place, sitting, and standing. The results demonstrated a heart rate measurement accuracy of less than 1.5 beats-per-minute which matched current sensor performance while participants moved or stood at distances up to 10 feet.
Obraczka said the AI model generalized well to new environments. The model succeeded in generalizing to the new environment because it learned to recognize patterns which allowed it to apply its knowledge to new situations.
The cost of devices remains affordable because ESP32 chips sell for $5 to $10 while Raspberry Pis can be purchased for $30.
Currently, Pulse-Fi is tested with a single user, but the team is beginning pilots with multiple users.
Obraczka added, “In addition to working on multi-user environments, we are also exploring other wellness and healthcare applications for Pulse-Fi,” including sleep apnea and breathing rate monitoring.
