Reddit has reportedly signed over its content to train AI models

Reddit posts might be the next fuel in the AI innovation machine, as the “front page of the internet” reportedly negotiated a content licensing deal to allow its data to be used to train AI models.

Ahead of a potential $5 billion IPO debut in March, Bloomberg reported the social media platform had signed a $60 million deal with an undisclosed (but big player) AI company, potentially as a last-minute sell to investors that the platform has potential money-making avenues in the world of AI.

Reddit has yet to confirm the deal.

The move means that Reddit posts, from the most popular subreddits to the comments of lurkers and small accounts, could build up already-existing LLMs or provide a framework for the next generative AI play. It’s a dicey decision from Reddit, as users are already at odds with the business decisions of the nearly 20-year-old platform.

Last year, following Reddit’s announcement that it would begin charging for access to its APIs, thousands of Reddit forums shut down in protest. Shortly after, the site itself crashed, and days later a group of Reddit hackers threatened to release previously stolen site data unless Reddit CEO Steve Huffamn reversed the API plan or paid them $4.5 million. Later, Reddit removed years of private chat logs and messages from users’ accounts, citing it was clearing data from before January 1, 2023, to prepare a new chat infrastructure.

Reddit announced other changes, as well, including a new “official” badge intended to distinguish real accounts from impersonators and new automatic moderation features. In September, Reddit removed the option to turn off ad personalization, rallying even more users against the platform’s evolution.

This new AI deal could generate even more user ire, as debate rages on about the ethics of using public data, art, and other human-created content to train AI.