Pedro Domingos

Half of STEM faculty are hired over someone more “qualified”, it’s ultimately a human process and there’s no algorithm that will spew out bias-free candidate rankings. Also lol at anyone who thinks universities will throw start up $$ at someone they think won’t be successful.https://twitter.com/pmddomingos/status/1477435086874169346 …

@pmddomingos's argument aside, the start-up point isn't universal. Once you leave the experimental sciences, start-up money is small, and faculty don't really generate revenue anyway. It's hard to see what's wasted on a less=qualified candidate other than long-term reputation.

& for revenue-generating departments, grant money not always being awarded blindly wrt race/gender means that it may make financial sense to hire someone "less qualified" b/c they'll still be more likely to bring in $$. The distorted incentives make this argument less convincing.