OpenAI and Microsoft knew they were starting a ‘doom loop’ for the web
The Verge Terrence O’Brien ● Covered by 5 sources
Court papers say OpenAI and Microsoft warned their own AI scraping could wreck the web. The docs call it a "doom loop" and even "the largest theft of labor in human history."
Based on reporting by The Verge, Terrence O’Brien — read the original for the full story.
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Unsealed court filings in the New York Times lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft have opened a nasty little window into how the companies talked about their own AI ambitions. The documents reportedly warned that the way they were scraping data to train models could set off a “doom loop” that would hurt the web itself.
The language inside the filings is blunt enough to make corporate PR people sweat. One passage calls the practice the “largest theft of labor in human history.” Another says it makes a “complete mockery of the idea of fair use.” That is not the sort of wording companies usually leave lying around if they expect it to age gracefully.
A lot of the most striking lines are said to come from Microsoft’s Director of Applied Science, Brent Hecht. Microsoft has since tried to put some distance between itself and those statements, according to spokesperson Alex Haurek.
This isn’t just a legal footnote. It shows that, behind the polished public talk about AI progress, the companies were apparently aware their data practices could blow back on the broader web. The public argument is usually about innovation and access. The private language, at least here, sounds a lot more like warning labels.
My take — AI-written commentary, not fact-checked reporting
This is the part of AI that never gets the slick keynote treatment: the business model depends on other people’s work, then everyone acts shocked when the bill shows up. The industry keeps selling magic while quietly admitting the plumbing is basically a siphon. Not exactly a confidence-builder.
Read more about this at: The Verge