this post was submitted on 17 Aug 2026
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702
Amazon Caught Destroying Rare Books to Train AI (futurism.com)
submitted 1 day ago by zarkanian@sh.itjust.works to c/technology@lemmy.world
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[–] tremble5218@programming.dev 70 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Amazon wasn't caught doing shit. "Caught" implies there is a possibility of consequences. Two days from now nobody is going to remember this story and the world will move on and there will be no consequences for this.

[–] derg@lemmy.world 20 points 1 day ago (2 children)

"caught" also implies they've been hiding it... It's been out in the open how they scan books to train AI for a while now.

[–] roofuskit@lemmy.world 11 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago)

I don't think most people realize that the most efficient process for scanning books involves disassembling them.

So of course they're upset to hear the books are disposed of afterwards.

[–] Jason2357@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It has been almost a trope that every time the discussion of them buying up the used market and cutting them up to scan, some apologist comes along and says that these books are mass produced garbage and not rare.

[–] zarkanian@sh.itjust.works 1 points 12 hours ago

Especially since the articles make it clear that the AI companies don't care about rarity or quality. It's just a dragnet to get as many books as possible. Sure, a lot of the books are going to be garbage, but some of them are going to be valuable, too.

The AI must be fed, and the only criterion is the book has to be published before 2022.

[–] rumba@lemmy.zip 5 points 20 hours ago

Whistle-blown?

I wish there were any path for accountability anymore.