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Sports betting in the age of AI is putting a new face on gambling technology, pushing at least one state to look at protecting bettors under its laws.
That state is Rhode Island, where legislation (H 7772) introduced in the state General Assembly on Jan. 26 would prohibit sports betting apps from using facial recognition and biometric recognition technology – specifically algorithms designed to increase wager amounts, condition a consumer, or increase play based on a consumer’s betting history.
The same prohibitions would apply to other online betting apps and VLTs at racetracks.
The legislation is sponsored by Rep. Joseph McNamara of Warwick and Rep. Brandon Potter of Cranston, both Democrats. It has been referred to the House State Government and Elections Committee, although no hearing date has been set.
Rhode Island was one of the first states to launch retail sports betting after the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, or PASPA, in 2018. It launched mobile sports betting the following year. Passage of H 7222 would make the state one of the first to specifically address the use of AI in gambling technology.
State Concerns With AI On The Rise
Biometrics, according to the Biometrics Institute, is the “unique biological and behavioral characteristics that can be used to identify an individual,” including facial appearance, DNA, fingerprints, hand size, gait, and even how one smells.
Facial recognition is a type of biometric recognition.
States began looking at AI with increased scrutiny after privacy concerns led major companies like IBM to stop selling facial recognition technology to governments.
Still, biometrics recognition is still widely used by corporations. And it’s a growing part of the internet gambling and gaming industry.
“Over the next few years, the internet gaming business could be transformed completely as artificial intelligence (AI) enters the scene,” FinancialNewsMedia.com reported in Oct. 2021. “At its core, AI is a type of software or hardware that learns — and it could be programmed to learn mostly about us, its users and those insights could drive the developments of new, hyper-personalized gaming and internet betting experiences.”
The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) reports legislation addressing the use of biometrics in commerce – but not for gambling or gaming, per se – was introduced in 24 states in 2021. None passed. AI-related bills filed in at least 19 states in 2020 met a similar fate.
