Reddit targets AI firm over scraped sports posts
The lawsuit argues Reddit users receive no benefits while AI companies profit from data scraped without approval, potentially violating content agreements.
Reddit has taken legal action against AI company Anthropic, accusing it of scraping content from the platform’s sports-focused communities.
The lawsuit claims Anthropic violated Reddit’s user agreement by collecting posts without permission, particularly from fan-driven discussions that are central to how sports content is shared online.
Reddit argues the scraping undermines its obligations to over 100 million daily users, especially around privacy and user control. According to the filing, Anthropic’s actions override assurances that users can manage or delete their content as they see fit.
The platform emphasises that users gain no benefit from technology built using their contributions.
These online sports communities are rich sources of original fan commentary and analysis. On a large scale, such content could enable AI models to imitate sports fan behaviour with impressive accuracy.
While teams or platforms might use such models to enhance engagement or communication, Reddit warns that unauthorised use brings serious ethical and legal risks.
The case could influence how AI companies handle user-generated content across the internet, not just in sports. As web scraping grows more common, the outcome of the dispute may shape future standards for AI training practices and online content rights.
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