Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has announced that it will resume training its AI models using public content shared by adult users in the UK, after a temporary pause in response to regulatory concerns.
The company will leverage public posts, including photos, captions, and comments, to train its generative artificial intelligence models. Meta stresses that private messages and information from users under the age of 18 will not be used for training purposes.
This update follows Meta’s decision in June to postpone the launch of its AI models in Europe after the Irish privacy regulator instructed the company to delay its plans to utilise social media data. The company subsequently announced that the delay would also address requests from 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 stated in a press release.
Facebook and Instagram users in the UK will begin receiving in-app notifications next week, informing them about Meta’s procedure for using their data for AI model training, and providing instructions on how to object to this practice.
In June, Meta’s plans faced opposition from advocacy group NOYB, which urged national privacy watchdogs across Europe to halt such use of social media content. The group argued that the notifications provided by Meta were insufficient to comply with the EU’s stringent privacy and transparency regulations.
Meta has made significant changes to its approach since then, according to the ICO. The regulator noted that the company has simplified the process for users to object to the processing of their data and has extended the time frame for doing so.
