On the one hand, Alphabet-C has updated its privacy policy, explicitly stating that it will collect public data for AI training. On the other hand, Alphabet-C has taken the lead in showing its sincerity to the "water sellers" of the AI era.
As one of the three key elements in the development of AI technology, data has always been the focus of the "battle of the gods" among tech giants.
On July 1st, Alphabet-C updated its privacy policy, explicitly stating that the company reserves the right to access user-generated content online to train its AI tools.
The updates to Alphabet-C's privacy policy are as follows:
Alphabet-C will use the information to improve our services and develop new products, features, and technologies for the benefit of our users and the public. For example, we will use public information to help train Alphabet-C's AI models and build products and features such as Google Translate, Bard, and Cloud AI.
By comparison, the previous version of Alphabet-C's privacy policy only mentioned using this data for "language models," not "AI models."
Media analysis points out that this privacy policy clause is significantly different from previous ones. Typically, these policies would explain how companies use information posted by users on their own servers. However, in this clause, Alphabet-C seems to reserve the right to collect and utilize all data posted on public platforms, as if the entire internet were its own AI playground.
Although anyone could previously see publicly posted content online, the way this information is used is changing. The focus of public concern has shifted from who can access the data to how the data is being utilized.
Alphabet-C's Bard and ChatGPT may have already used your forgotten blog posts or restaurant reviews from years ago to train themselves. Alphabet-C has not immediately commented on public concerns about privacy.
Alphabet-C's Sincerity towards "Data Sellers"
In addition to Alphabet-C's users, data providers have become the objects that Alphabet-C must please in order to hoard "data."
Data providers are seen as "water sellers" in the AI era.
Musk restricted access to prevent AI from freeloading data, which caused a major Twitter outage. Similarly, Reddit, a US forum, introduced paid APIs to prevent data freeloading, resulting in several popular third-party Reddit apps being taken offline. This demonstrates the protection of "water" by "water sellers" in the AI era.
Alphabet-C has taken the lead in expressing its sincerity towards these "water sellers." The data of large news publishers naturally becomes the primary focus. In recent months, discussions surrounding AI copyright issues have never ceased, intensifying the already tense relationship between large technology companies and the publishing industry. Alphabet-C, however, took the lead and expressed willingness to pay for news content.
Citing an executive from a newspaper group, the media reported that Alphabet-C has formulated an agreement and is willing to pay for news content in the future:
AI competition, Alphabet-C hoards "data". "Alphabet-C has already developed a licensing agreement, and they are willing to accept the principle of paying for content, but we have not discussed the amount. Alphabet-C stated that negotiations on the amount will take place in the coming months, which is the first step."
In response to this report, Alphabet-C clarified that the report on the licensing agreement is "inaccurate" and added that "it is still in the early stages, and we are continuing to collaborate with the ecosystem, including news publishers, to gather their opinions."
According to Alphabet-C, they are engaged in "ongoing conversations" with news organizations in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe. Meanwhile, their AI tool, Bard, is being trained on "publicly available information," which may include websites that require payment.