Meta to Utilize Public Content for AI Training in Europe

Published On Tue Apr 15 2025

Meta says it will resume AI training with public content from European users

Social media company Meta announced on Monday that it will be utilizing publicly available content from European users to resume the training of its artificial intelligence models. This decision comes after a pause in the AI training process last year due to concerns raised by activists regarding data privacy.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, plans to train its AI systems using public posts and comments from adult users within the 27-nation European Union. The company also stated that interactions with its Meta AI, such as questions and queries, will be utilized to enhance and refine the AI models.

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Challenges with AI Training in Europe

Meta faced challenges in its AI training efforts in Europe due to strict data privacy laws within the European Union. These laws empower individuals to control how their personal information is utilized by companies. Activist Max Schrems' Vienna-based group, NOYB, lodged complaints with national privacy watchdogs, urging them to intervene and halt Meta's AI training plans.

Addressing Privacy Concerns

Meta assured users that private messages will not be used to train its AI models. The company highlighted that it is following the lead of industry counterparts like Google and OpenAI, who have previously leveraged data from European users for training purposes. Meta will now inform EU users about the AI training process and provide a means for them to object at any time.

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Meta emphasized that it will respect all objection forms submitted by users in the European Union. The company aims to uphold privacy standards while advancing its AI capabilities and services for its users.