Meta's MCI Employee Data Tool Draws Internal Backlash and EU Privacy Concerns
The internal backlash and privacy questions highlight the tension between Meta's AI training ambitions and its workforce's trust, with potential regulatory exposure under GDPR.
Reporting from 1 sources: GIGAZINE.
Meta has installed a tool called Model Capability Initiative (MCI) on employee computers to track mouse movements and clicks for AI training data. Employees have strongly resisted, distributing protest flyers and raising concerns about surging data usage and potential violations of EU privacy rules.
Meta installed the Model Capability Initiative (MCI) tool on employee computers in April 2026 to collect mouse movements, clicks, and on-screen snapshots for AI model training. Internal memos obtained by Reuters show employees calling MCI an 'employee data extraction factory.' In May, workers at multiple US offices posted protest flyers in meeting rooms, vending machines, and toilet stalls, referencing Meta's planned 10% layoffs. Remote workers reported MCI consuming a month's data allowance in days. An employee analysis using Claude suggested MCI accesses code changes, sleep/wake cycles, visited sites, and clipboard content, storing it unencrypted. Meta spokesperson Dave Arnold called that post 'fundamentally inaccurate' and said MCI is only on US computers. Legal experts told Reuters that if the tool collects data from EU residents, it could violate GDPR's purpose limitation principle.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.