In a unique rehabilitation initiative, prisoners in Finland are participating in an AI training program, aiming to reduce re-offending by equipping inmates with modern digital skills. The project, in collaboration with market data startup Metroc, moves away from traditional prison tasks, offering a new opportunity for rehabilitation through the world of artificial intelligence.
For the past two years, prisoners at three closed prisons in Finland have been engaged in AI annotation tasks, such as labelling and classifying data. The inmates work on tasks like answering questions related to construction, helping to train AI language models to better understand Finnish. This work plays a crucial role, particularly for languages like Finnish, spoken by only about five million people globally, which presents challenges in developing AI systems.
The initiative, which is part of the broader Smart Prison project, focuses on giving inmates more relevant and modern skills, as explained by Jussi Virnala, the Founder of Metroc. “As our software interprets text material and various construction product details, we need to teach the AI language models to understand Finnish language, construction context, and related topics.”
This rehabilitation program aims not only to teach practical skills but also to provide structure and meaning to the prisoners’ daily lives. As one prisoner, nicknamed Robin, shared with Euronews Next, they chose the AI annotation work “to spend time on meaningful activities. Artificial Intelligence was a new topic for me, and it aroused my interest. Also to earn money.”
Prisoners are provided with laptops and basic training in construction history and terminology before starting their tasks. Researchers monitoring the project believe that the structure and skills gained through this work can increase the chances of successful reintegration into society. Tuukka Lehtiniemi, a researcher at the University of Helsinki, highlighted the value of such programs: “It’s good to give prisoners something meaningful to do during the day to help them adjust to civilian life. Data work in general is seen as very helpful.”
A Model for the Future
Finland’s AI work program and its broader Smart Prison initiative have caught the attention of other Nordic and European countries, which are now seeking consultation on implementing similar digitalisation projects in their prison systems.
With AI technologies rapidly growing, Finland’s forward-thinking approach offers a blueprint for combining rehabilitation with skill development, paving the way for inmates to reintegrate into society with relevant, modern-day skills.
Source: Euronews
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