Meta Gets EU Green Light to Train AI on User Content

Meta has received approval from the EU’s data regulator to resume training its AI models using publicly shared content from its social media platforms—a plan previously paused due to regulatory concerns.

The company announced in a 14 April blog post that it will now use posts, comments, and public interactions from adult users across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger, as well as questions directed to its AI assistant, to improve its models.

The company said:

“[It’s] important for our generative AI models to be trained on a variety of data so they can understand the incredible and diverse nuances and complexities that make up European communities. That means everything from dialects and colloquialisms, to hyper-local knowledge and the distinct ways different countries use humor and sarcasm on our products.”

Starting this week, users in the EU will begin receiving notifications—both in-app and via email—explaining how their public data may be used for AI training.

These messages will include a link to an opt-out form, allowing individuals to decline participation.

Meta emphasized that it will honour all existing and future objections submitted through this process.

Importantly, private messages and any data from users under 18 will remain excluded from AI training efforts.

The opt-out form, Meta says, will be accessible, easy to understand, and simple to use, as the company seeks to maintain transparency and user control.

Regulatory Issues Lead Meta to Pause EU Plans

In July 2024, Meta postponed plans to train its AI models using public content from its platforms after the privacy advocacy group None of Your Business filed complaints in 11 European countries.

In response, the Irish Data Protection Commission (IDPC) requested a pause while a regulatory review was conducted.

The complaints alleged that Meta’s updated privacy policy would have enabled the company to use years of personal posts, private images, and online tracking data for AI training without adequate consent.

Meta has now secured approval from the European Data Protection Board, confirming that its revised AI training practices align with legal requirements.

The company noted it is continuing to engage “constructively with the IDPC” to ensure ongoing compliance.

Meta noted:

“This is how we have been training our generative AI models for other regions since launch. We’re following the example set by others, including Google and OpenAI, both of which have already used data from European users to train their AI models.”

This development follows the rollout of the EU’s AI Act in August 2024, which introduced a regulatory framework addressing data quality, privacy, and security in AI development.