The new direction for Reddit is leveraging its user data for AI training at a certain price, but the social news aggregator recently discovered a behind-the-back approach done by Microsoft. Reddit made a grand revelation about it by calling out Big Tech who allegedly "scraped" its data on the platform and used it for AI training without striking any deals with the company.
It did not stop there, as Reddit has also revealed other companies who had their hands reaching for its data, without paying or asking for consent.
Reddit Calls Out Microsoft for Data Scraping
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It was recently revealed by Reddit's CEO, Steve Huffman, via an interview, that several companies have accessed its platform without permission, with software giant Microsoft called out for allegedly scraping data. However, Microsoft was not the only company named for doing so, as other AI search engine platforms including Anthropic and Perlexitywere also identified.
Previously, Reddit vowed that whoever tries to access the platform without consent or striking a deal with them would either be blocked or have limited access.
It was revealed by Huffman that some of the websites that it caught were already blocked by Reddit, but others were reached out to for negotiations.
Huffman claimed that Microsoft was among those who are "refusing" negotiations with them, but a Reddit spokesperson clarified that the software company tried to strike up a deal but no agreements were made. That being said, Huffman wants these companies to pay them for scraping data off Reddit, and refusing to do so will end up withthem being blocked.
Reddit's Data is Up for Sale
A controversial move by Reddit last year centered on putting a price on using its data or accessing its API which led to apps from third-party developers shutting down and facing public backlash and protest. It was also revealed amidst this controversial issue that Reddit has been selling its user data to third-party clients to use for AI model training.
Days later this early 2024, Reddit officially filed for its initial public offering (IPO) which was long speculated by the company as previous reports speculated it to go public. Users and reports were able to connect the dots on its user data sale for AI training and its expensive API pricing that it was because of the social networking platform's plan for its IPO.
Moreover, Reddit made it official that it made a deal with Google that allowed Big Tech to access its user data for AI training in exchange for a whopping $60 million fee per year. After Reddit vowed to block companies for illegal data access, it named new names that have been accessing its platform to scrape data, now wanting them to pay, and has since banned them for access.
