<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
is	O
a	O
crowdsourcing	O
platform	O
developed	O
by	O
Google	B-Application
intended	O
to	O
improve	O
a	O
host	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
services	O
through	O
the	O
user-facing	O
training	O
of	O
different	O
algorithms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
was	O
released	O
for	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
on	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	O
store	O
on	O
August	O
29	O
,	O
2016	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
also	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
web	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
includes	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
short	O
tasks	O
users	O
can	O
complete	O
to	O
improve	O
many	O
of	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
different	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
completing	O
these	O
tasks	O
,	O
users	O
provide	O
Google	B-Application
with	O
data	O
to	O
improve	O
services	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
Translate	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
was	O
released	O
quietly	O
on	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	O
store	O
,	O
with	O
no	O
marketing	O
from	O
Google	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
It	O
received	O
mixed	O
reviews	O
on	O
release	O
,	O
with	O
many	O
reviews	O
stating	O
that	O
its	O
lack	O
of	O
monetary	O
rewards	O
is	O
unusual	O
,	O
as	O
similar	O
platforms	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Opinion	I-Application
Rewards	I-Application
,	O
often	O
reward	O
users	O
with	O
Play	O
credits	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
includes	O
different	O
types	O
of	O
tasks	O
,	O
and	O
these	O
each	O
provide	O
Google	B-Application
with	O
different	O
information	O
that	O
it	O
can	O
give	O
as	O
training	O
data	O
to	O
its	O
machine	B-Algorithm
learning	I-Algorithm
algorithms	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
app	O
's	O
description	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
refers	O
to	O
these	O
tasks	O
as	O
"	O
microtasks	O
"	O
which	O
should	O
take	O
"	O
no	O
more	O
than	O
5-10	O
seconds	O
"	O
to	O
complete	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Upon	O
launch	O
,	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
Android	B-Application
application	I-Application
presented	O
users	O
with	O
5	O
different	O
tasks	O
:	O
image	O
transcription	O
,	O
handwriting	B-Application
recognition	I-Application
,	O
translation	O
,	O
translation	O
validation	O
,	O
and	O
map	O
translation	O
validation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
most	O
recent	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
includes	O
11	O
tasks	O
:	O
Image	O
Label	O
Verification	O
,	O
Sentiment	O
Evaluation	O
,	O
Audio	O
Validation	O
,	O
Smart	O
Camera	O
,	O
Glide	O
Type	O
,	O
Handwriting	B-Application
Recognition	I-Application
,	O
Reading	O
Charts	O
,	O
Trust	O
in	O
Charts	O
,	O
Translation	O
,	O
Translation	O
Validation	O
,	O
and	O
Image	O
Capture	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
Maps	O
Translation	O
validation	O
is	O
no	O
longer	O
a	O
task	O
in	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
Android	B-Application
and	O
web	B-Application
apps	I-Application
,	O
users	O
can	O
still	O
complete	O
translation	O
and	O
translation	O
validation	O
tasks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
of	O
these	O
tasks	O
help	O
improve	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
translating	O
capabilities	O
,	O
most	O
notably	O
in	O
Google	B-Application
Translate	I-Application
,	O
and	O
any	O
other	O
Google	B-Application
app	O
with	O
translated	O
content	O
,	O
including	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
data	O
gained	O
from	O
this	O
task	O
is	O
used	O
to	O
help	O
read	O
text	O
within	O
images	O
for	O
services	O
like	O
Google	B-Application
Street	I-Application
View	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
similar	O
task	O
is	O
available	O
in	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Photos	O
mobile	O
and	O
web	B-Application
apps	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
unlike	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
,	O
the	O
photos	O
that	O
are	O
presented	O
there	O
are	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
own	O
photos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Handwriting	B-Application
recognition	I-Application
relies	O
on	O
users	O
to	O
read	O
handwritten	O
words	O
and	O
transcribe	O
them	O
to	O
text	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
completing	O
this	O
task	O
helps	O
improve	O
Gboard	B-Device
's	O
handwriting	O
feature	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
evaluations	O
by	O
the	O
users	O
of	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
help	O
with	O
various	O
recommendation-based	O
technologies	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
uses	O
on	O
platforms	O
like	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
,	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Play	O
Store	O
,	O
and	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
.	I-General_Concept
</s>
<s>
This	O
task	O
is	O
designed	O
to	O
help	O
ensure	O
businesses	O
and	O
landmarks	O
are	O
recognizable	O
in	O
applications	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Audio	O
Validation	O
helps	O
improve	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
Text-to-Speech	O
technology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Crowdsource	B-Application
web	B-Application
app	I-Application
,	O
"	O
Verifying	O
machine	O
generated	O
captions	O
will	O
help	O
make	O
images	O
more	O
accessible	O
to	O
people	O
with	O
visual	O
and	O
cognitive	O
impairment	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
using	O
Smart	O
Camera	O
,	O
the	O
user	O
can	O
point	O
the	O
devices	O
camera	O
to	O
an	O
object	O
,	O
similar	O
to	O
how	O
Google	B-General_Concept
Lens	I-General_Concept
is	O
used	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
task	O
was	O
added	O
on	O
May	O
17th	O
,	O
2020	O
to	O
help	O
improve	O
the	O
algorithm	O
for	O
Gboard	B-Device
's	O
glide	O
typing	O
feature	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Beyond	O
the	O
tasks	O
that	O
users	O
can	O
complete	O
,	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
app	O
has	O
an	O
"	O
Achievements	O
"	O
section	O
that	O
shows	O
users	O
stats	O
and	O
badges	O
which	O
they	O
earn	O
through	O
completing	O
different	O
tasks	O
in	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
users	O
contribute	O
to	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
by	O
completing	O
tasks	O
,	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
tracks	O
their	O
total	O
number	O
of	O
contributions	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
metrics	O
like	O
"	O
upvotes	O
"	O
which	O
show	O
how	O
many	O
of	O
a	O
user	O
's	O
answers	O
are	O
"	O
in	O
agreement	O
with	O
answers	O
from	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
community	O
,	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
accuracy	O
"	O
which	O
shows	O
what	O
percentage	O
of	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
answers	O
have	O
been	O
accepted	O
as	O
correct	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
April	O
2018	O
update	O
to	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
included	O
a	O
new	O
"	O
Image	O
Capture	O
"	O
task	O
in	O
which	O
users	O
can	O
take	O
photos	O
,	O
tag	O
them	O
,	O
and	O
upload	O
them	O
to	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
can	O
choose	O
to	O
open-source	B-License
their	O
images	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
,	O
to	O
share	O
them	O
with	O
researchers	O
and	O
developers	O
not	O
exclusive	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
interview	O
with	O
Wired	O
Magazine	O
,	O
Anurag	O
Batra	O
,	O
a	O
product	O
manager	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
who	O
leads	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
team	O
,	O
said	O
that	O
the	O
data	O
gained	O
from	O
users	O
completing	O
this	O
image	O
capture	O
task	O
could	O
improve	O
Google	B-Application
Images	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
Camera	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Google	B-General_Concept
Lens	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
21	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
an	O
update	O
introduced	O
dark	B-General_Concept
theme	I-General_Concept
to	O
the	O
mobile	O
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
update	O
also	O
changed	O
the	O
overall	O
user	B-Application
interface	I-Application
significantly	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
is	O
also	O
available	O
as	O
a	O
web	B-Application
application	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
offers	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
same	O
tasks	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Image	O
Label	O
Verification	O
,	O
translation	O
,	O
and	O
translation	O
validation	O
,	O
and	O
includes	O
a	O
page	O
for	O
users	O
to	O
view	O
their	O
achievements	O
,	O
much	O
like	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
application	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
version	O
,	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
website	O
includes	O
a	O
task	O
for	O
validation	O
image	O
captions	O
,	O
and	O
evaluating	O
facial	O
expressions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
,	O
The	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
website	O
also	O
does	O
not	O
have	O
dark	B-General_Concept
theme	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
release	O
,	O
many	O
reviewers	O
found	O
the	O
app	O
's	O
lack	O
of	O
monetary	O
rewards	O
unusual	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
has	O
a	O
similar	O
app	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Opinion	I-Application
Rewards	I-Application
,	O
which	O
offers	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
store	I-Application
credits	O
after	O
completing	O
short	O
surveys	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
August	O
2016	O
review	O
from	O
Android	B-Application
Pit	O
noted	O
that	O
"	O
this	O
reliance	O
on	O
altruism	O
 [ is ] 	O
a	O
little	O
strange	O
given	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
already	O
has	O
an	O
app	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
Opinion	I-Application
Rewards	I-Application
,	O
which	O
has	O
a	O
financial	O
incentive	O
for	O
user	O
feedback	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
review	O
also	O
expressed	O
concern	O
with	O
this	O
model	O
,	O
citing	O
that	O
users	O
would	O
be	O
less	O
likely	O
to	O
complete	O
these	O
tasks	O
without	O
more	O
substantial	O
rewards	O
,	O
writing	O
that	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
is	O
"	O
banking	O
on	O
the	O
kind	O
nature	O
of	O
its	O
users	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
asking	O
"	O
How	O
are	O
users	O
,	O
who	O
generally	O
want	O
everything	O
free	O
and	O
without	O
adverts	O
,	O
going	O
to	O
respond	O
to	O
this	O
in	O
the	O
long-term	O
?	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
review	O
from	O
Wired	O
shared	O
similar	O
concerns	O
,	O
writing	O
"	O
while	O
Google	B-Application
is	O
being	O
open	O
about	O
its	O
motivations	O
,	O
it	O
will	O
be	O
difficult	O
for	O
users	O
to	O
know	O
what	O
difference	O
their	O
contributions	O
make.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
's	O
FAQ	O
page	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
addresses	O
this	O
question	O
of	O
"	O
Will	O
I	O
get	O
paid	O
for	O
my	O
answers	O
?	O
</s>
<s>
Crowdsource	B-Application
is	O
a	O
community	O
effort	O
–	O
we	O
rely	O
on	O
the	O
goodwill	O
of	O
community	O
members	O
to	O
help	O
improve	O
the	O
quality	O
of	O
services	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
,	O
Google	B-Application
Translate	I-Application
,	O
and	O
others	O
,	O
so	O
that	O
everybody	O
in	O
the	O
world	O
can	O
benefit	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
August	O
2016	O
review	O
,	O
CNET	O
noted	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
statement	O
in	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
's	O
description	O
,	O
"	O
Every	O
time	O
you	O
use	O
it	O
,	O
you	O
know	O
that	O
you	O
've	O
made	O
the	O
internet	O
a	O
better	O
place	O
for	O
your	O
community	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
,	O
is	O
not	O
accurate	O
,	O
stating	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
does	O
not	O
offer	O
free	O
access	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
and	O
Google	B-Application
Translate	I-Application
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
review	O
from	O
TechCrunch	O
also	O
noted	O
that	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
is	O
"	O
solely	O
focused	O
on	O
helping	O
Google	B-Application
improve	O
its	O
own	O
services	O
,	O
"	O
contrasting	O
it	O
with	O
Amazon	O
Mechanical	O
Turk	O
,	O
which	O
focuses	O
on	O
tasks	O
from	O
third	O
parties	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
April	O
2018	O
interview	O
in	O
Wired	O
stated	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
machine	B-Algorithm
learning	I-Algorithm
algorithms	I-Algorithm
work	O
best	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
and	O
Western	O
Europe	O
,	O
but	O
are	O
less	O
effective	O
in	O
less	O
prosperous	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
this	O
interview	O
Anurag	O
Batra	O
,	O
a	O
product	O
manager	O
at	O
Google	B-Application
who	O
leads	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
team	O
,	O
shared	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
motivations	O
behind	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
app	O
,	O
stating	O
that	O
Google	B-Application
has	O
"	O
very	O
sparse	O
training	O
data	O
set	O
from	O
parts	O
of	O
the	O
world	O
that	O
are	O
not	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
and	O
Western	O
Europe	O
,	O
"	O
According	O
to	O
Wired	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
has	O
a	O
team	O
that	O
promotes	O
the	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
app	O
in	O
India	O
and	O
throughout	O
Asia	O
at	O
colleges	O
,	O
and	O
will	O
likely	O
expand	O
to	O
Latin	O
America	O
later	O
in	O
2018	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
blog	O
post	O
on	O
Local	O
Guides	O
Connect	O
,	O
Batra	O
explains	O
why	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
is	O
helpful	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
detailing	O
that	O
the	O
questions	O
that	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
asks	O
users	O
are	O
designed	O
to	O
collect	O
better	O
samples	O
of	O
data	O
to	O
feed	O
their	O
machine	B-Algorithm
learning	I-Algorithm
algorithms	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
uses	O
the	O
answers	O
provided	O
by	O
users	O
of	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
,	O
and	O
validates	O
them	O
by	O
showing	O
them	O
anonymously	O
to	O
other	O
Crowdsource	B-Application
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
,	O
once	O
answers	O
are	O
validated	O
,	O
they	O
are	O
used	O
to	O
"	O
train	O
computer	O
algorithms	O
that	O
run	O
services	O
such	O
as	O
Translate	O
,	O
Maps	O
,	O
Gboard	B-Device
,	O
and	O
others.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
brief	O
on	O
Cio	O
Dive	O
stated	O
that	O
an	O
"	O
accurate	O
data	O
set	O
is	O
critical	O
"	O
to	O
the	O
success	O
of	O
new	O
technologies	O
such	O
as	O
voice	B-Protocol
assistants	I-Protocol
and	O
autonomous	O
vehicles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
brief	O
also	O
notes	O
that	O
companies	O
like	O
Google	B-Application
and	O
IBM	O
are	O
well	O
positioned	O
in	O
the	O
fields	O
of	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
and	O
machine	O
learning	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
volume	O
of	O
data	O
available	O
to	O
them	O
to	O
train	O
and	O
develop	O
advanced	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
