facial recognition

L.A. Congressman Slams Amazon's Use of Facial Recognition Technology

Rachel Uranga

Rachel Uranga is dot.LA's Managing Editor, News. She is a former Mexico-based market correspondent at Reuters and has worked for several Southern California news outlets, including the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Los Angeles Daily News. She has covered everything from IPOs to immigration. Uranga is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and California State University Northridge. A Los Angeles native, she lives with her husband, son and their felines.

L.A. Congressman Slams Amazon's Use of Facial Recognition Technology
Image from Amazon's Rekognition software guide.

Amazon may have halted the sale of its facial recognition software to police, but the move hasn't eased pressure on the tech giant.

In a letter sent to its CEO Jeff Bezos on Tuesday, Democratic Congressman Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif) blasted Amazon's handling of its software, Rekognition, calling on the company to provide detailed info about privacy and bias inherent in the program.

Amazon could not be immediately reached for comment.

But, the letter comes on the heels of Amazon's announcement that it banned police use of the surveillance software for a year so that Congress has time to place stricter regulations on the technology, a move it supports. Microsoft placed a similar moratorium on their facial recognition technology and IBM dropped theirs altogether citing worries about violating basic human rights and freedoms.

An image from Amazon Rekognition's online developer guide.

Amazon

Gomez, who represents Los Angeles and sits on the House Oversight and Reform Committee, called Amazon's move nothing more than "performative."

"Corporations have been quick to share expressions of support for the Black Lives Matter movement following the public outrage over the murders of Black Americans like George Floyd at the hands of police," he wrote. "Unfortunately, too many of these gestures have been performative at best. Calling on Congress to regulate facial recognition technology is one of these gestures."

The letter was another salvo in what Gomez characterizes as a two-year long effort to get the e-commerce giant to divulge information about how widespread use of the surveillance software is and how data is collected.

"After two years of formal congressional inquiries – including bicameral letters, House Oversight Committee hearings, and in-person meetings – Amazon has yet to adequately address questions about the dangers its facial recognition technology can pose to privacy and civil rights, the accuracy of the technology, and its disproportionate impact on communities of color," Gomez told Bezos.

The issue has played out for years in the Los Angeles communities Gomez represents. Activists regularly object to the use of technology that has the potential to exacerbate racial bias and impede on privacy. The issue exploded anew on the national stage in the aftermath of the George Floyd protests.

Gomez told Politico last week he's drafting legislation that would place restrictions on local and state police from using the technology.

Read Gomez's full letter below:

Dear Mr. Bezos:

On June 10, Amazon announced a one-year moratorium on police use of its facial recognition technology, Rekognition. In a statement, your company said it supports federal regulation for facial recognition technology and "stand[s] ready to help if requested." In the spirit of that offer, I write to request information on the implementation of the moratorium, and resubmit a list of questions I have asked your company over the course of nearly two years on public safety and civil rights concerns associated with Amazon's facial recognition technology – questions that have largely gone ignored or woefully unaddressed.
While I am encouraged by the direction Amazon appears to be taking on this issue, the ambiguity of the announcement raises more questions than answers. For example, the 102-word blog post announcement fails to specify whether Amazon will stop selling Rekognition to police departments during the moratorium; whether the company will stop the development of its facial recognition system during the moratorium; whether the moratorium would encompass both local and federal law enforcement agencies beyond the police, such as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); whether the moratorium applies to current contracts with law enforcement agencies; and whether Amazon plans to submit their technology to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for testing before it resumes operations. I am also troubled by the one-year expiration of the moratorium and how Amazon will proceed in the event federal legislation is not signed into law within this self-imposed timeframe.
After two years of formal congressional inquiries – including bicameral letters, House Oversight Committee hearings, and in-person meetings – Amazon has yet to adequately address questions about the dangers its facial recognition technology can pose to privacy and civil rights, the accuracy of the technology, and its disproportionate impact on communities of color. Below is a representative, non-exhaustive list of questions I have asked Amazon regarding your company's facial recognition policies, and its decision to market it and sell it to law enforcement agencies. I look forward to your prompt and public engagement on these matters.

Outstanding Requests

Adequate answers from Amazon on its efforts – if any – to ensure customers, including law enforcement agencies and departments, do not use their product in violation with the company' terms of use, policies, or other restrictions. Requested on July 26, 2018; January 24, 2019; and February 27, 2019.

Information on any internal accuracy or bias assessments performed on Rekognition, and the results for race, gender, skin pigmentation, and age. Requested on November 29, 2018.

Further information on why – despite Amazon's recommend use of Rekognition at a 95% confidence threshold – it sells the product to law enforcement agencies and departments with an option to operate the software at the default 80% threshold. Requested on February 6, 2019; February 27, 2019; and September 26, 2019.

Information fully responsive to my question on whether Amazon built protections into the Rekognition system to protect the privacy rights of innocent Americans. Requested on November 29, 2018.

Details regarding mechanisms – if any – built into Recognition that allow for the automatic deletion of unused biometric data. Requested on November 29, 2018.

Clarification on whether Amazon conducts any audits of Rekognition use by law enforcement to ensure that the software is not being abused for secretive government surveillance. Requested on February 6, 2019; and February 27, 2019.

Answers regarding reports that Amazon is engaged in surveillance partnerships with over 1,350 police departments across the United States. Requested on February 6, 2019; and February 27, 2019.

Records and information related to all law enforcement or intelligence agencies that Amazon has contracted or otherwise communicated with regarding acquisition of Rekognition and currently use the service. Requested on February 6, 2019.

Information on whether Amazon Rekognition is currently integrated with any police body-camera technology or existing public-facing camera networks. Requested on February 6, 2019; and February 27, 2019.

Clarification on whether the training dataset (rather than subsequent calibration sets) skewed white, or whether it was primed to recognize white faces. Requested on February 6, 2019; and February 27, 2019.

Answers regarding reports that Amazon is marketing this technology to ICE. Requested on February 6, 2019; and February 27, 2019.

Corporations have been quick to share expressions of support for the Black Lives Matter movement following the public outrage over the murders of Black Americans like George Floyd at the hands of police. Unfortunately, too many of these gestures have been performative at best. Calling on Congress to regulate facial recognition technology is one of these gestures. However, Amazon – as a global leader in technology and innovation – has a unique opportunity before them to put substantive action behind their sentiments of "solidarity with the Black community" by not selling a flawed product to police, and instead, play a critical role in ending systemic racism in our nation's criminal justice system.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter. I look forward to your responses on this issue.

Sincerely,

Jimmy Gomez
Member of Congress
From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
amazon jimmy gomez george floyd protests facial recognition
https://twitter.com/racheluranga
rachel@dot.la

Hello Sunshine Sold for More Than $900M. Now Reese Witherspoon Is Buying It Back.

Grace Lee
Hello Sunshine Sold for More Than $900M. Now Reese Witherspoon Is Buying It Back.
Image Source: Hello Sunshine

🔦 Spotlight

Hey there, LA.

In Hollywood, every successful story eventually gets a sequel. This one brings Reese Witherspoon back to the company she built.

Five years after selling control of Hello Sunshine in a deal worth more than $900M, Witherspoon is partnering with French production group Mediawan to buy back the Los Angeles media company.

The reported purchase price is in the low-to-mid eight figures, significantly below Hello Sunshine’s valuation when Candle Media acquired a controlling stake in 2021.

That difference tells a larger story than any single Hollywood transaction.

Hello Sunshine was one of the most prominent acquisitions made during the streaming boom, when platforms were spending aggressively and investors placed enormous value on production companies with recognizable founders, established audiences and libraries of intellectual property.

Witherspoon had built all three.

Founded in 2016, Hello Sunshine developed its business around stories centered on women, producing projects including “Big Little Lies,” “The Morning Show,” “Little Fires Everywhere” and “Daisy Jones & The Six.” It also turned Reese’s Book Club into an influential audience and discovery platform that now reaches 6.2 million readers and drives approximately $900M in annual U.S. book sales, according to the company.

By 2021, that combination of talent, intellectual property and direct audience access looked like the foundation of a next-generation media empire.

Candle Media, backed by capital from Blackstone, acquired Hello Sunshine as part of a broader effort to assemble a portfolio of entertainment brands. The company also purchased businesses including Moonbug Entertainment, ATTN: and Faraway Road Productions.

Then the streaming market changed.

Entertainment companies became more disciplined about content spending. The race to accumulate subscribers gave way to pressure for profitability. Production budgets tightened, consolidation slowed and some of the valuations assigned during the streaming boom became difficult to maintain.

Hello Sunshine’s return to founder-led ownership reflects how dramatically the media landscape has changed since 2021. It also gives Witherspoon an opportunity to regain greater influence over the company at a moment when its core assets may matter more than its former valuation suggests.

Under the new ownership structure, Hello Sunshine plans to refocus on premium film and television, Reese’s Book Club and new storytelling and distribution formats. Mediawan brings an international production network, while Witherspoon brings something harder to manufacture: a trusted personal brand and an audience willing to follow her recommendations from books to screens.

That relationship with consumers is increasingly valuable in a fragmented media market. Studios can finance productions. Streaming services can distribute them. Far fewer companies can reliably convince millions of people to care before a project is even released.

For Los Angeles, the deal reflects the increasingly fluid boundary between entertainment company, consumer brand and technology-enabled audience platform. The most resilient media businesses may not be those producing the greatest volume of content, but those that own a direct relationship with a specific community.

The first Hello Sunshine deal captured the optimism of the streaming era.

The second may offer a more focused model for what comes next, with the company once again guided by the founder who understood its audience from the beginning.

Hollywood loves a comeback story.

This time, the company is making one too.

LA Tech Week’s Final Stretch

Still making the most of LA Tech Week? We have organized the remaining events by location to make planning the weekend a little easier:

Event schedules may change, so confirm the latest details with the organizer before heading out.

More from this week’s LA startup and venture scene below.

🤝 Venture Deals

    LA Companies

    • Goodweek raised a $12M seed round led by Adara Ventures to expand its AI management platform for small and midsize businesses. The company brings tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Mistral into one governed workspace and will use the capital to accelerate sales and expand into Latin America and Asia. - learn more

    LA Venture Funds
    • Fika Ventures co-led Otter Health’s $8M seed round alongside Evidenced Capital, with participation from Slow Ventures, Metrodora, CoFound Partners, Patient Capital, SemperVirens and Layout Ventures. The startup will use the funding to scale its AI-powered platform, which helps healthcare payers and providers reduce unnecessary care and manage quality without relying as heavily on traditional prior authorization. - learn more
    • Nant Capital co-led Prolific Machines’ $50M Series B2 alongside Atoms & Bits, bringing the biotechnology company’s total funding to more than $100M. Prolific will use the capital to scale its light-controlled biomanufacturing platform, expand pharmaceutical and biotech programs and begin early work on tissue and organ fabrication. - learn more
    • Family Fund participated in Allara’s $30M funding round alongside new investors Camino Partners and Foreground Capital, while existing backers including Index Ventures and GV increased their commitments. The women’s healthcare company will use the capital to expand AI-enabled care, grow its provider and enterprise partnerships and advance research into hormonal, metabolic and reproductive conditions. - learn more
    • Vida Ventures participated in Soufflé Therapeutics’ oversubscribed $135M Series B, which was led by Juvia Group. The biotech will use the funding to move three lead programs into clinical trials for muscular dystrophy, heart failure and muscle and metabolic disorders while advancing its broader pipeline of targeted RNA therapies. - learn more
    • FJOR participated in LightSprint’s $6.1M seed round, which was led by 645 Ventures. The AI software platform will use the funding to expand its enterprise product and grow its engineering and go-to-market teams as it helps employees across departments make changes to company codebases while keeping engineers in control. - learn more
    • Muse Capital participated in Collective X Health’s oversubscribed $3.2M pre-seed round, which was co-led by Council Capital and Anthemis Female Innovators Lab Fund. The women’s health intelligence startup will use the funding to expand its female-focused research and data platform, meet growing enterprise demand and support new research aimed at closing the women’s health data gap. - learn more
    • Act One Ventures participated in Intake AI’s $2.5M pre-seed round, which was led by Kapor Capital. The startup is building AI agents that automate clinical-trial setup and operations, helping research teams turn protocols into documents, search study materials and transfer approved forms into existing systems. - learn more
    • M13 participated in Ultra’s $62M financing, which included a $50M Series A led by Framework Ventures. The Brooklyn-based robotics startup will use the capital to expand deployment of its AI-powered warehouse robots, which handle packing, sorting and other fulfillment tasks and have already processed more than 500,000 orders. - learn more

    LA Exits

    • Farcaster is being acquired by Balaji Srinivasan’s Network School from Neynar, marking the decentralized social network’s second change in ownership this year. The deal includes Farcaster’s app, protocol repositories and related products, with its new owner planning to introduce a rules-based “social smart contract” governing full participation on the platform; financial terms were not disclosed. - learn more
    • Creator Authority has been acquired by Billion Dollar Boy Group, bringing the agency’s B2B influencer marketing expertise and LinkedIn specialization into BDB’s global creator business. The deal will help Creator Authority scale its work with enterprise brands while strengthening BDB’s presence on the U.S. West Coast and expanding its B2B creator marketing capabilities; financial terms were not disclosed. - learn more
    • Burbank-based CareerArc was acquired by AI hiring platform Humanly, with financial terms undisclosed. The deal combines CareerArc’s recruitment marketing and social recruiting tools with Humanly’s AI-powered candidate engagement, screening and interviewing platform, creating a more connected system for employers managing high-volume hiring. - learn more
    • Ethiqly was acquired by Carnegie Learning from Owl Ventures and the company’s management, with financial terms undisclosed. Carnegie Learning plans to integrate Ethiqly’s AI-powered writing platform into its literacy offerings, helping students improve their writing while giving teachers greater visibility into the drafting, revision and learning process. - learn more

      Download the dot.LA App

      tech news los angeles tech news newsletter
      los angeles tech news

      How to Navigate LA Tech Week 2026

      Grace Lee
      How to Navigate LA Tech Week 2026

      🔦 Spotlight

      Happy Friday, Los Angeles.

      Next week, hundreds of tech events will take over the city, bringing founders, investors, engineers and creators together from October 12 through 18.

      Calling LA Tech Week a conference does not quite capture the experience.

      Presented by Andreessen Horowitz, Tech Week is a decentralized collection of panels, workshops, demonstrations and gatherings hosted independently by startups, venture firms and technology companies. There is no convention center or central stage. The programming stretches from Santa Monica and Venice to Culver City, Downtown, El Segundo and beyond.

      In other words, the city is the venue.

      AI remains the dominant theme for 2026, appearing across enterprise software, healthcare, finance, media and the creator economy. The schedule also reflects industries where Los Angeles has built a particular advantage, including aerospace, defense, robotics, advanced manufacturing, entertainment and consumer technology.

      That range is what makes LA Tech Week distinct. It brings together the software companies shaping what comes next with the industries that already define Southern California.

      The challenge is deciding where to show up.

      Our advice: apply early and organize your schedule by neighborhood. Crossing from Santa Monica to Downtown may look manageable on a calendar created by someone who has never driven in Los Angeles.

      To help you spend more time meeting people and less time crossing the city, we have organized each day’s events by location:

      You can also browse the complete official LA Tech Week calendar.

      Plan carefully, but do not fill every minute. The best conversation of the week may be the one that was never on your calendar.

      More from this week’s LA startup and venture scene below.

      🤝 Venture Deals

        LA Companies

        • El Segundo-based Gallatin AI raised a $50M Series A from new and existing investors including 8VC and Silent Ventures, bringing its total funding to $70M. The defense technology startup will expand its engineering team and advance Navigator, an AI platform that helps U.S. military units coordinate vehicle readiness, supplies, medical logistics and other mission-support operations. - learn more
        • Pasadena-based quantum computing startup Oratomic raised a $475M Series B at a $5.4B valuation, just three months after its Series A. ARCH Venture Partners, Spark Capital, Khosla Ventures, Index Ventures, General Catalyst and Bezos Expeditions co-led the round, bringing Oratomic’s total funding to $775M as it works toward a commercially viable, fault-tolerant quantum computer by 2030. - learn more
        • Torrance-based Fortastra raised a $30M Series A led by First In, with participation from Upfront Ventures, Space Capital, Rsquared, Side Door Ventures, ATX Ventures and existing investors. The company will use the capital to develop its next-generation maneuverable spacecraft, expand its engineering and operations teams and scale production of systems designed to protect critical assets in orbit. - learn more
        • Parallel Systems raised a $100M Series C led by AVP, with participation from Hillspire, Agility Global, Cobalt Capital, Anthos Capital, Congruent Ventures, Riot Ventures and Collaborative Fund. Founded by former SpaceX engineers, the company will use the funding to scale production and commercial deployment of its autonomous, battery-electric Panther rail vehicles, which are designed to make short-haul freight more competitive with trucking. - learn more
        • Gaming studio Gardens Interactive secured more than $35M in a Series B led by Lightspeed, with participation from Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, Accel, Innovation Endeavors, Zenith Capital and other investors. The company will use the funding to launch and operate its debut social role-playing “strandbox” game, an evolving multiplayer world shaped by players’ actions and interactions. - learn more
        • Outer Spaces raised an $8M pre-seed round led by Upfront Ventures, with participation from Unlock Venture Partners, Mucker Capital and Genius Ventures. The startup is developing outdoor furnishings with integrated solar panels and batteries, turning backyards into sources of clean energy and backup power. - learn more
        • Furientis raised a $25M seed round led by Benchmark at a reported $125M valuation, following a $5M pre-seed announced in May. The defense startup will use the capital to scale production of lower-cost missile interceptors designed to be assembled quickly with readily available components, with a long-term goal of producing 1,000 systems annually at each factory. - learn more
        • Hiyo raised a $20.8M Series B led by Constellation Brands, with returning investor Live Nation also participating. The nonalcoholic beverage company will use the funding to expand its adaptogen- and nootropic-infused social tonics across more than 13,000 retail locations while growing its presence at hospitality venues and live events. - learn more
        LA Venture Funds
        • Navitas Capital participated in Vesta’s $30M Series B, which was led by Conversion Capital and included backing from several major mortgage lenders and financial institutions. The company will use the funding to scale its AI agents across mortgage origination, automating tasks such as application reviews, underwriting decisions and closing-document checks. - learn more
        • MTech Capital led Nettle’s oversubscribed $4.8M seed round, with participation from Project A Ventures, Sure Valley Ventures, Portfolio Ventures and Ventures Together. The insurtech startup will use the funding to expand across the U.S. and Europe while growing its AI platform, which helps commercial insurers identify property risks, accelerate inspections and generate reports. - learn more
        • Bonfire Ventures doubled down on Santé by participating in the company’s $15M Series A, which was led by FINTOP and included other returning investors. The New York startup will use the funding to expand its AI-powered operating system for independent wine and liquor stores, which combines point-of-sale, e-commerce, payments, inventory and marketing tools in one platform. - learn more

        LA Exits

        • Winnow Solutions was acquired by Marina del Rey-based Spring Labs, with financial terms undisclosed. Winnow’s attorney-built library of more than 100,000 state and federal regulatory requirements will become a core part of SpringGRC, helping financial institutions connect changing laws directly to their compliance policies, controls and workflows. - learn more

          Download the dot.LA App

          tech news los angeles tech news newsletter
          los angeles tech news

          LA Tech Week 2026: Sunday’s Event Lineup

          Grace Lee
          LA Tech Week 2026: Sunday’s Event Lineup

          🔦 Spotlight

          LA Tech Week 2026 closes Sunday with one final day of events across Los Angeles. We have organized the remaining lineup by neighborhood so you can finish the week with a few last conversations before everyone returns to their regularly scheduled inboxes.

          ARTS DISTRICT

          12:00 PM

          CARSON

          12:00 PM

          CULVER CITY

          9:00 AM

          • Women in Cleantech & Sustainability Hike and Network: See Details Here
            Women in Cleantech & Sustainability

          6:00 PM

          • Founders pitch competition: See Details Here
            Biomorphix solutions, Nightingale regenerative

          HOLLYWOOD

          10:00 AM

          4:00 PM

          • AI International: Film, Music Video & Micro-Drama: See Details Here
            AI International Film Festivals

          MID CITY

          1:00 PM

          OTHER

          12:00 PM

          • ORGANIC LIFE LABS™ PRESENTS THE ALIGNMENT LAB: The Science of human performance: See Details Here
            The Blue Room Collective

          SANTA MONICA

          8:00 AM

          1:00 PM

          6:00 PM

          SOUTH LA

          2:00 PM

          • Future Builders : Family STEM Day: See Details Here
            Black L.A. Tech Week (Community Collective)

          VENICE

          10:00 AM

          12:00 PM

          • How to Raise Funds to Fund Any Business Using Digital Products.: See Details Here
            DN Events

          VIRTUAL

          5:00 PM

          WEST HOLLYWOOD

          3:00 PM

          Each session provides unique opportunities to gain insights, network, and explore various fields of tech innovation. For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.

          Download the dot.LA App

          tech news los angeles tech news newsletter
          RELATEDEDITOR'S PICKS

          How Will LA Look in 2028? A Look at the City's Plan To Embrace Transformational Tech

          The LAPD Is Spending Millions On Spy Tech to Beef Up Security

          Q&A With The Former Head of Yeezy-Adidas On Creating FCTRY LAb

          Two Months After Robots Were Introduced Into Nursing Homes, Residents Can't See Them Leaving: 'We'd Be Screwed'

          At UCLA, Professors See 'Exciting Opportunities' in AI Writing Tools

          Trending

          LA Tech Week 2026: Sunday’s Event Lineup

          Hello Sunshine Sold for More Than $900M. Now Reese Witherspoon Is Buying It Back.

          LA Tech Week 2026: Saturday’s Event Lineup

          How to Navigate LA Tech Week 2026

          © dot.LA All rights reserved

          TermsPrivacyCopyrightCookies

          Follow Us: