Twitch is likely to ruffle feathers among many streamers. The streaming platform now uses user-created content and chat profiles to train parent company Amazon’s artificial intelligence models. The decision drew sharp criticism from the community, as the option to object was hidden deep within the account settings.
Amazon subsidiary Twitch has once again come under criticism from streamers and viewers. According to an update to the streaming platform’s privacy policy, the company now reserves the right to use user-generated content, including video streams, VODs, clips and chat messages, for artificial intelligence training.
While other platforms have announced similar measures, Twitch’s handling of opt-out options has particularly caused dissatisfaction. If you don’t want Amazon’s AI models to process your own data, you must manually disable the well-hidden setting.
The policy change took effect without much notice. Twitch notes that the data and interactions exposed on the platform can be used to further develop Amazon’s machine learning and artificial intelligence systems. This not only affects content creators’ videos, but also the text that viewers enter in chats.
In particular, the implementation of data protection has been criticized for inconsistencies. By default, all accounts will have AI training enabled instead of data usage opt-in. If you want to opt out of data sharing, you’ll have to dig into your account’s privacy settings. The corresponding options are located under the data protection and security settings in the Artificial Intelligence System Data Usage sub-item, where the slider must be moved manually.
This approach was met with incomprehension within the streaming community. Many content creators have expressed concerns that their voices, appearances, and copyrighted content are being exploited without being compensated or explicitly asked. Twitch itself has yet to comment on the ongoing criticism.