Software is deciding who gets a loan, who counts as a citizen and what prices you pay online. Who will step in when the machines get out of hand?
"AMAZON is all kinds of broken." If you caught that tweet on 12 December last year, and were quick, you might have grabbed some exceptional bargains. For an hour only, Amazon was selling an odd mix of items – cellphones, video games, fancy-dress costumes, mattresses – for one penny.
The surprise price drop cost sellers dearly. Goods usually marked £100 went for a 99.99 per cent discount. Hundreds of customers leapt at the chance, often buying in bulk. Even though Amazon reacted quickly and cancelled many orders, they were unable to recall those that their automated system had already dispatched from warehouses. Once set in motion, the process was hard to stop. Thanks to a ...
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