Meta Halts AI Launch in Europe After Regulatory Request

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has temporarily paused its plans to use personal data from EU users to train its AI systems following a request from the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC). The decision comes amid concerns that Meta's data collection practices may not comply with the EU's stringent General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The DPC, acting on behalf of several data protection authorities across the EU, has welcomed the move. Meta had planned to use public content from user interactions, status updates, and photos to develop its AI models but excluded private messages and accounts of minors from this data.

Privacy advocacy group NOYB had raised complaints alleging that Meta's data usage could breach various aspects of GDPR. The delay allows Meta to address these concerns and aligns with similar requests from the UK's Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Meta has expressed disappointment over the decision, emphasizing that it had incorporated regulatory feedback and had been in communication with European data protection authorities since March. The suspension highlights the challenges tech companies face in balancing AI development with compliance to privacy regulations in different regions.