Reddit has taken legal steps against AI firm Anthropic, accusing it of misusing thousands of user comments to power its chatbot Claude. Filed in California, this case throws into sharp relief the ongoing friction between content owners and AI companies over data usage in enhancing language models.
Founded in 2021 by former OpenAI execs, Anthropic quickly emerged as a significant player in the AI field, backed by Amazon and valued at $61.5 billion. While the company insists on its commitment to AI safety and ethical development, Reddit’s lawsuit paints a different picture. The complaint even states, ‘This case is about the two faces of Anthropic,’ suggesting that while Anthropic publicly supports legal boundaries, it’s quietly profiting from user content.
The suit alleges that since December 2021, Anthropic has been scraping Reddit’s content without permission, even after previously assuring that such practices had stopped. Reddit claims that automated systems from Anthropic accessed its servers over 100,000 times, prompting the platform to seek not only financial compensation but also a court order to enforce its terms.
Anthropic has firmly denied these claims and vowed a robust defence. Meanwhile, Reddit’s partnerships with tech leaders like Google and OpenAI—which include carefully crafted licences ensuring both user privacy and a financial return—have bolstered its market performance. Notably, news of the lawsuit helped Reddit shares jump by more than 6%.
This legal battle mirrors similar moves by artists and writers who are challenging the unapproved use of their work by AI companies. While many in the industry argue that training models naturally transforms original content, the results of these cases could have far-reaching implications for data rights and the future landscape of AI.
