Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, announced plans to resume using publicly available content from European users to train its AI models. This decision follows a pause last year due to data privacy concerns raised by activists. The company will utilize public posts and comments shared by adult users across the 27 EU member nations to enhance its AI systems.
Meta's move comes after launching its AI assistant for European users, which had already been available in the US and other major markets. The company's AI training efforts had previously been hindered by strict EU data privacy laws that grant individuals control over the use of their personal information.
The organization "NOYB," led by activist Max Schrems, had lodged complaints with various privacy regulators, urging them to halt Meta's AI training plans. Meta stated that an EU privacy regulatory group confirmed the legality of its initial approach in December of last year.
Meta emphasized that private messages will not be used for AI training and highlighted that competitors like Google and OpenAI have already been using European user data for similar purposes. The company will notify EU users about the training process and provide a form for users to express objections, which Meta promises to respect.
