Meta installs tracking software

Meta is installing software on U.S. employees’ work computers to record clicks, keystrokes and screenshots for artificial intelligence training. (reuters.com) Internal memos reviewed by Reuters said the tool is called the Model Capability Initiative, or MCI, and it will run on work-related apps and websites used by U.S.-based employees and contractors. (reuters.com) Meta told Reuters and TechCrunch that the data is for model training, not performance reviews, and that the company has safeguards for sensitive content. (reuters.com) (techcrunch.com) The basic idea is straightforward: Meta wants AI systems that can use software the way workers do, including clicking buttons, opening menus and using keyboard shortcuts. The company said models need examples of “how people actually use” computers to learn those tasks. (cnbc.com) (techcrunch.com) CNBC reported that Meta plans to monitor activity across hundreds of sites and apps, including Google, LinkedIn, Wikipedia, GitHub, Slack and Atlassian products. CNBC said internal messages showed the list also included Meta properties such as Threads and Manus, and that the list was still changing. (cnbc.com) The project lands as Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg pushes to rebuild Meta’s standing in generative artificial intelligence after stronger showings from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google. CNBC reported that Zuckerberg began a hiring and spending push last summer and put Scale AI co-founder Alexandr Wang in charge of Meta Superintelligence Labs. (cnbc.com) Reuters reported that the memos framed the software as a way for employees to help improve Meta’s models “simply by doing their daily work.” That phrasing sharpened internal concern because the same day-to-day activity being captured is the behavior Meta wants its agents to copy. (reuters.com) (arstechnica.com) Ars Technica reported that the software is set to collect periodic screenshots for context, not just raw keyboard and mouse logs. That gives Meta training data on what was on screen when a worker selected a menu, switched tabs or completed a task. (arstechnica.com) Meta has said the rollout is limited to U.S.-based staff for now. The company has not publicly said when, or whether, it will extend the program beyond that group. (pcmag.com) (reuters.com) For now, Meta’s message to staff is that routine office work has become training data. The company’s message to investors and rivals is that it is willing to mine its own workplace to build AI that can operate a workplace. (reuters.com) (cnbc.com)