Captchas were never about keeping bots out: they’ve always been an excuse to turn ordinary internet visitors into mechanical turks to tag photos to train AI systems without paying the workforce.
Think about it: how many hours total did you spend in your life tagging photos for Google and Google never paid you for your work?
I know it’s not specific to the Fediverse, but I recommend you watch this video from Fran Blanche: it’s eye-opening and a bit heart-breaking:
When Google calls you a slur
Fran Blanche is a genuinely kind person, a good engineer, and her career has been hobbled by rampant transphobia.