Brazil to Meta: Keep Your AI Away from Our Citizens’ Data

Following the European Union’s lead, Brazil banned Facebook owner Meta from using its citizens’ personal data to train AI models.

Brazil gave Meta five days to comply with the new regulations, warning of a daily fine of US$8,000 for non-compliance.

Brazil’s Data Protection Authority (ANPD) stated that using citizens’ personal data could “cause irreparable damage.”

Meta argued that such a ban would hinder the development of new AI models, ultimately preventing people from enjoying the benefits of artificial intelligence.

“This is a step backwards for innovation, competition in AI development and further delays bringing the benefits of AI to people in Brazil,” Meta stated.

The ban comes just weeks after Human Rights Watch advised the Brazilian government that using personal data to train AI models could increase the occurrence of deepfakes.

Meta’s platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, are extremely popular in Brazil. As of today, Brazil has 102 million Facebook users and more than 113 million Instagram users.

Other social media companies face similar regulatory challenges in Europe, and it is expected that more countries will follow the European lead in regards to personal data protections. For businesses which collect data and hoped to build their AI models on the loads which they have gathered, the coming landscape will prove very challenging.