Meta scales back plan for internal mouse-tracking tech, citing staff concerns
New controls allow employees to pause data collection for up to 30 minutes or request exemptions from the initiative
Add BT as a preferred source
[CALIFORNIA] Meta is dialling back elements of its plan to collect employee mouse movements, keystrokes and other actions for use as artificial intelligence-training data, it said in an internal memo on Tuesday (Jun 3), following weeks of angry pushback from staffers.
New controls will allow employees to pause the data collection for up to 30 minutes at a time and request exemptions from the initiative, the memo said.
It was authored by Stephane Kasriel, a vice-president in Meta’s AI model-building Superintelligence Labs unit.
He added that the team behind the software also introduced “several optimisations” to reduce its impact on computer battery life, after employees complained it was consuming so much data it made their home Internet usage spike.
In the memo, he noted: “While we remain confident in the privacy protections we put in place at launch, which went through several layers of risk review, we have heard your concerns about personal data on work devices, battery life and wanting more control over when capturing happens.”
A Meta spokesperson declined to comment.
The company announced in May that it was installing new tracking software on US-based employees’ computers to capture mouse movements, clicks and keystrokes for use in training its AI models.
It is part of a broad initiative to build AI agents that can perform work tasks autonomously.
The launch came during a far-reaching restructuring at Meta and prompted an angry backlash among staffers, who have likened Meta to an “employee data-extraction factory”.
It could deepen Meta’s regulatory troubles in the EU, where tech companies are facing heated legal clashes over the ways they collect and deploy data, Reuters has reported. REUTERS
Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter. Delivered to your inbox. Free.
Share with us your feedback on BT's products and services
TRENDING NOW
Orchard plot, Jurong East EC, Raffles Town Club among 10 new housing sites in H2 GLS plan
Singapore among countries facing proposed US levy of at least 10% over forced labour imports
Johor property old hand KSL readies family handover amid market boom
Land for 4,745 private homes supplied in H2 2026 GLS confirmed list, including Jurong Lake District white site
