X Changes its Terms to Bar Training of AI Models Using its Content

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X changes its terms to bar training of AI models using its content

Social network X, formerly known as Twitter, has updated its developer agreement to officially prohibit the use of its platform's public content for training artificial intelligence models. This move solidifies the platform's control over its vast dataset, particularly in light of its relationship with Elon Musk's own AI company, xAI.

The updated terms of service now include a specific restriction against this practice:

In an update on Wednesday, the company added a line under "Reverse Engineering and other Restrictions," a subsection of restrictions on use: "You shall not and you shall not attempt to (or allow others to) [...] use the X API or X Content to fine-tune or train a foundation or frontier model," it reads.

This policy change follows a series of adjustments and is seen as a strategic move to benefit its sister AI company:

This change comes after Elon Musk's AI company xAI acquired X in March - understandably, xAI wouldn't want to give its competitors free access to the social platform's data without a sale agreement. In 2023, X changed its privacy policy to use public data on its site to train AI models. Last October, it made further changes to allow third parties to train their models.

X is not alone in putting up walls around its data as the AI race heats up. Other technology companies have recently made similar changes to their policies to prevent unauthorized AI training:

Reddit has also put in place safeguards against AI crawlers, and last month, The Browser Company added a similar clause to its AI-focused browser Dia's terms of use.

As major platforms that host vast amounts of human-generated text and conversations increasingly restrict access for broad AI training, what might the long-term consequences be for AI development? Does this trend toward creating proprietary "data moats" risk stifling innovation and competition, potentially concentrating the future of advanced AI in the hands of a few powerful companies with exclusive data access?

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