A few months back, reports emerged that Reddit had signed a $60 million deal with OpenAI to allow the ChatGPT creator to train its LLM using Reddit content. On Thursday, the deal was confirmed.
In a blog post shared by Reddit and OpenAI the companies unveiled the details of the agreement, which essentially sees the “front page of the internet” trading its content for access to AI tools and an advertising partnership.
“Keeping the internet open is crucial, and part of being open means Reddit content needs to be accessible to those fostering human learning and researching ways to build community, belonging, and empowerment online,” reads the blog post. “Reddit is a uniquely large and vibrant community that has long been an important space for conversation on the internet.”
But what exactly does this mean for Reddit’s users? How will your posts, comments, and images be affected by this new partnership?
What does the OpenAI deal mean for your Reddit posts and comments?
In a nutshell, it means your content is being used to train ChatGPT.
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“OpenAI will bring Reddit content to ChatGPT and new products, helping users discover and engage with Reddit communities,” reads the core deal point outlined in the blog. “To do so, OpenAI will access Reddit’s Data API, which provides real-time, structured, and unique content from Reddit. This will enable OpenAI’s AI tools to better understand and showcase Reddit content, especially on recent topics.”
The part about Reddit’s Data API is key. This means that along with everything you’ve posted on Reddit in the past, you can safely assume that anything you post going forwards will immediately become AI training material.
Can Reddit users opt out?
If the thought of training an AI doesn’t sit well with you, you can obviously decide not to post or comment on Reddit anymore. But what about all your old posts? Well, the honest answer lies in Reddit’s User Agreement, which makes it clear exactly what rights you’re giving up when you use the platform:
“When Your Content is created with or submitted to the Services, you grant us a worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, transferable, and sublicensable license to use, copy, modify, adapt, prepare derivative works of, distribute, store, perform, and display Your Content and any name, username, voice, or likeness provided in connection with Your Content in all media formats and channels now known or later developed anywhere in the world. This license includes the right for us to make Your Content available for syndication, broadcast, distribution, or publication by other companies, organizations, or individuals who partner with Reddit. You also agree that we may remove metadata associated with Your Content, and you irrevocably waive any claims and assertions of moral rights or attribution with respect to Your Content.”
Basically, when you post on Reddit, they can pretty much do what they want with it — including making your content “available for syndication, broadcast, distribution, or publication by other companies, organizations, or individuals who partner with Reddit.”
And if you decide to delete your content at some point down the line? Mashable has reached out to Reddit to ask if deleted content can still be used to train OpenAI, and we will update this article when we receive a response.
UPDATE: May. 17, 2024, 3:02 p.m. GMT Reddit confirmed to Mashable that it doesn’t license deleted posts and comments — so it’s possible that content deleted prior to the deal’s completion may not be included. But given that OpenAI now has access to Reddit’s API, it’s probably safe to assume that anything newly posted is immediately being used to train its AI.