Adobe codifies pledge not to train AI on customer data
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Illustration: Tiffany Herring/Axios
Adobe on Tuesday updated its terms of service to make explicit that it won't train AI systems using customer data.
Why it matters: The move follows an uproar over largely unrelated changes Adobe made in recent days to its terms of service — which contained wording that some customers feared was granting Adobe broad rights to customer content.
In an interview with Axios, Adobe chief strategy officer Scott Belsky insisted that the company never had plans to assume any ownership of customers' work or to train its AI systems.
- However, he said Adobe does need to make use of customer data to, for example, create thumbnails as well as to fulfill its obligation to prevent child sexual abuse material from being stored on its servers.
As part of the new changes, Adobe is not just stating what it does, but also what it promises not to do — namely, train AI systems using customer data.
- It's also separating out the license that Adobe needs to run its optional beta programs in which customers share feedback based on the experiences they have in the test software.
- "We're really just trying to make it very clear how we operate," Belsky told Axios.
Between the lines: Adobe does train its Firefly generative AI engines using content from Adobe Stock — an image collection to which it explicitly has a license.
- Adobe has started sharing some Firefly revenue with those who provide images to the stock image collection.
The big picture: The backlash against Adobe led some customers to cancel their subscriptions and others to threaten to do so.
- It comes amid increasing concern over how tech companies are using their customers' information to train generative AI systems.
- The concern is especially high among Adobe's customers, many of whom believe generative AI puts their livelihoods at risk.
- Belsky acknowledged the confusion extended to Adobe's own employees. He said the company has taken steps to explain its policies internally and believes its terms are among the most creator-friendly in the industry.
The controversy has overlapped with another unwanted development for Adobe: On Monday, the Justice Department sued the company for allegedly making its subscriptions too hard to cancel.
The bottom line: "I hope that we can inspire others in the industry to do more and that this last two weeks will ultimately make us a better company," Belsky said.
