The New York Times has launched legal action against OpenAI, accusing the company of using its news articles without permission to train AI language models.
The NYT has asked the court to make OpenAI keep all ChatGPT user data indefinitely to find evidence for its case.
OpenAI's Chief Operating Officer, Brad Lightcap, criticised the demand, saying it conflicts with privacy commitments and longstanding industry standards. OpenAI is appealing the order, arguing it represents an excessive overreach that weakens user privacy protections.
Despite the ongoing appeal, OpenAI must comply with the court's directive until further notice. A limited, audited legal and security team will manage the stored data securely and only use it to meet legal obligations.
The data retention order impacts over 400 million weekly ChatGPT users, including those on Free, Plus, Pro, Teams, and many API plans. However, Enterprise and Zero Data Retention users remain unaffected.
