Even though generative AI has become a trending topic lately, you’ve most likely become familiar with Zillow’s original AI model, the Zestimate, since its release in 2006. For almost two decades, the Zestimate has helped millions of people understand the potential market value of real estate properties. (View Highlight)
Out of the box, the LLMs behind many AI solutions do not consider fair housing requirements in conversations with users, and when deployed, can perpetuate bias. To address this, Zillow has built the Fair Housing Classifier, which prioritizes fairness as we advance our commitment to innovation with generative AI technology. (View Highlight)
The Fair Housing Classifier focuses on mitigating the risk of illegal “steering,” which is the practice of influencing a buyer’s choice of communities based upon legally protected characteristics under federal law. The classifier detects language that goes against federal, state and local antidiscrimination laws. When the classifier spots cases of noncompliance, it’s up to the system developers to figure out how the LLM will respond. (View Highlight)
As a part of our commitment to responsible innovation, Zillow is releasing this classifier under an open-source license. This will empower others in the real estate, technology and civil rights sectors to join in strengthening fair housing practices to foster a fair and equitable real estate and technology landscape. (View Highlight)
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