AI Companies Are Buying Rare Books, Scanning Them for Training Data, Then Shredding Them
Multiple AI companies are buying rare books, scanning them for training data, then shredding the originals — including irreplaceable texts.
A new report from MIT Technology Review, delivered as a live editorial talk at SXSW London, presented the framework behind the publication's annual AI10 list — its curated guide to the most consequential developments in the field each year. The editors structured the session around five macro themes they say define the current state of AI, though the full list was not disclosed during the talk.
The AI10 is MIT Tech Review's tool for cutting through volume and identifying patterns worth tracking over a longer arc. Past editions flagged developments — from transformer architectures to protein folding models — years before they registered with mainstream audiences.
The SXSW London venue is notable: MIT's editors are no longer speaking exclusively to research labs and enterprise IT departments. The audience for AI context has expanded to the broader creative and business community now living daily with decisions made years ago by a small group of engineers. That audience needs a different kind of map.
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Multiple AI companies are buying rare books, scanning them for training data, then shredding the originals — including irreplaceable texts.
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