Pokémon Go location data captured by players is not being used to train military drones, Niantic Spatial has insisted.
The denial follows the publication of a report by Dutch outlet Trouw, which examined a recently-announced partnership between Niantic Spatial and Vantor, an intelligence company with links to the defence sector.
Niantic and Vantor are working together on technology that could allow people and vehicles — including ground-based machines such as bomb disposal robots, or aerial systems such as drones — to be able to pinpoint their location even in areas without reliable GPS. This would allow such vehicles to operate in remote locations without signal, or in situations where signal could be jammed.
The article alleged that this would be made possible using “30 billion” pieces of location data obtained from Pokémon Go players — and that while they were knowingly using their phone to capture video of their surroundings, they were unknowingly also contributing to military technology. “First you think you are playing a game, and then suddenly your data can be used in a war,” reads one eye-catching quote from Trouw’s article. But this is untrue, Niantic Spatial has insisted.
“While we have an agreement with Vantor, announced last December, it is still in its very early stages, and sharing this data is not part of the agreement,” a spokesperson for the company told IGN. “We are committed to working with all of our customers and partners to ensure that Niantic Spatial products are used in a responsible manner that upholds human rights and ethical principles.”
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