Meta does a U-turn on controversial new AI terms for businesses

Meta has hit pause on new terms of service for its business customers that would have granted it the right to grab any content from their websites. Not only that, but it would also have shifted the blame for every error produced through faulty AI to its customers. The new terms of service were revealed on October 19 and initially due to take effect on October 30, though Meta later pushed the start date back to November 20. But that small delay wasn’t enough to calm customer pushback, and now Meta has posted a note on Facebook’s business help center saying that the update had now been paused indefinitely. Given the strength of feeling, Meta’s U-turn will not have come as a surprise. The terms would have been seen as far too onerous for customers, as well as exposing them to a legal minefield of the sort that UK regulators recently warned about. In a statement to Harvard’s Nieman Lab, the company said that “We’re pausing the changes as we continue to engage with stakeholders and take our time to get this right.” Meta has had a troubled time recently. Two weeks ago, it was fined for illegal use of customers’ data and in May, the company laid off 8,000 employees. This article first appeared on CIO.