Reddit signs multi-million dollar deal with undisclosed company to train AI models،
For years, Reddit operated as its famous slogan suggests: “The front page of the Internet.” However, last year much of that changed when the site's management announced it was moving to a paid API model, causing over 6,000 subreddits to disappear in protest and shut down. many third-party applications. Now, more changes are afoot that could cause even more backlash against the popular site.
After changes to the site last year, when it began charging for its API, reports began to emerge that it planned to block sites from scraping its data. Of course, this was a concern for those who normally searched for content on the site by adding “reddit” to
Google searches. While data scraping from AI bots was criticized by X's Elon Musk, Reddit following suit wasn't exactly a move its users celebrated, as it affected user experience.
What's next for Reddit?
Now, as reported
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Bloomberg Report reveals that Reddit is selling access to its massive user-generated content to a major (but anonymous) AI company. The deal is worth $60 million a year in the lead-up to Reddit's highly anticipated IPO, which is expected to happen as soon as next month.
However, this isn't really a new development after all. In a previous
Interview with the New York TimesReddit CEO Steve Huffman (/u/spez) made the site's motivation clear, stating that “Reddit's body of data is really valuable, but we don't need to give all that value to some of the largest companies in the world. free.”
Reddit monetizing user comments seems like a smart business move as its IPO approaches. Still, the decision to monetize its content in this way may not go down well with many Redditors whose community efforts are what brought the platform to its glory. We'll have to wait and see what the company's exact plans are once new information is leaked, as well as what the community's reaction to this revelation will be.
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