Overview

• Germany’s Oberlandesgericht Köln rejected an injunction, clearing Meta to start AI training with public Facebook and Instagram content as of May 27.
• The opt-out period for European users ended May 26, and any data not excluded by that deadline is now part of Meta’s AI training set.
• Public posts, comments, photos, videos and other non-restricted content will feed Meta’s models, while private WhatsApp chats remain encrypted and excluded.
• Consumer groups including Verbraucherzentrale NRW and Noyb argue that relying on an opt-out mechanism rather than explicit consent breaches EU data protection rules.
• Meta says the training is essential to develop AI that accurately captures European languages, cultures and contexts.