Meta pauses AI training in Europe after Irish regulator request

What happened

On 14 June 2024 Meta said it would delay training its large language models on public content shared by adults on Facebook and Instagram, and delay launching Meta AI in Europe, at the request of the Irish Data Protection Commission, its lead regulator, acting on behalf of the European data protection authorities. Meta said it had sent more than two billion in-app notifications and emails to people in Europe since 22 May 2024 explaining the plan and offering an objection form. Meta said it would keep working with the Commission.

Why it may matter to you

This is a regulator pressing pause on training models on Europeans' public posts — the clearest example of a data protection authority intervening directly in how a company trains its models on people's content.

What is not yet known

When training on European public content would resume, and whether the Commission's concerns would be resolved, was not stated in the announcement.