Meta Platforms announced that it will resume training its AI models using public content shared by adult users on Facebook and Instagram in the UK in the coming months. This follows a temporary pause due to regulatory concerns. The company will use public posts, including photos, captions, and comments, to train its generative AI models, but it clarified that private messages and content from users under 18 will not be included.
The decision comes after Meta paused its AI model launch in Europe in mid-June, following a request from the Irish privacy regulator to delay the use of social media data. Meta also noted that the pause allowed it to address concerns raised by Britain’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
“Since we paused training our generative AI models in the UK to address regulatory feedback, we’ve engaged positively with the ICO … this clarity and certainty will help us bring AI at Meta products to the UK much sooner,” Meta said on Friday.
Starting next week, Facebook and Instagram users in the UK will begin receiving in-app notifications explaining Meta’s data usage procedures and how they can opt out of having their data used for AI training, Meta announced.
The ICO noted that Meta has revised its approach since pausing the plans in June, simplifying the process for users to object to the data processing and extending the timeframe in which they can do so.
Meta’s original plans faced criticism from the advocacy group NOYB, which called on national privacy regulators across Europe to intervene, arguing that the notifications did not comply with the EU’s strict privacy and transparency standards.
For more updates, click here.
