Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has suspended its IPO plans AI tools in Europe at the request of the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC).
In a blog post, The tech giant said it was “disappointed” by the DPC’s request, where it had planned to use public publications, including images and videos shared on its platforms, to train AI extended language models (LLMs) aimed at creating generative AI experiences.
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The Irish DPC said on Friday (June 14, 2024) that Meta’s decision followed extensive discussions with the Commission.
Accordingly, the organization welcomed Meta’s decision and will continue to collaborate with Meta and other European data protection authorities (DPAs).
“This is a step backwards for European innovation, competition in AI development and further delays in bringing the benefits of AI to European citizens,” Meta said.
“We remain confident that our approach complies with European laws and regulations. AI training is not unique to our services and we are more transparent than many of our industry peers.
“We are committed to bringing Meta AI, and the models that power it, to more people around the world, including in Europe. But, simply put, without including local news, we could only give people a second-rate experience. This means we are unable to launch Meta AI in Europe at this time.
He adds: “We will continue to work collaboratively with the DPC so that Europeans have access to – and are properly served – the same level of AI innovation as the rest of the world.
“This delay will also allow us to respond to specific requests we received from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), our UK regulator, before commencing training.”
Meanwhile, Stephen Almond, ICO executive director of regulatory risk, added: “We are pleased that Meta has reflected on the concerns we have shared with users of their service in the UK and responded to our request to pause and review plans to use Facebook and Instagram user data to train generative AI.
“To get the most out of generative AI and the opportunities it offers, it is essential that the public can be confident that their right to privacy will be respected from the start.
“We will continue to monitor major generative AI developers, including Meta, to review the safeguards they have in place and ensure that the information rights of UK users are protected,” he concluded .
