There’s no denying that Reddit is one of the most powerful online conversation platforms out there. Today it finds itself in numerous legal battles, most notably over data scraping and artificial intelligence (AI) lawsuits. In the face of these challenges, the company has doubled down on its promises to users that it will protect their data and provide advertisers with results. Reddit’s Chief Legal Officer Ben Lee noted that the platform is a prime target for data scrapers due to its immense repository of human conversation.
Just last year, Reddit signed a high profile $60 million pact with Google. This successful partnership drove a staggering 74% increase in overall ad revenue year over year. This partnership, along with collaborations with other AI firms such as OpenAI, underscores Reddit’s strategy to leverage its valuable data while navigating the complexities of legal issues surrounding AI usage.
Huffman, the CEO of Reddit, has been quite vocal about how complicated the current state of lawsuits against data scraping and AI are. He stated, “Look, we see both sides of this. Of course, I can’t add anything to the legal conversation right now, but our complaints are out there, and I think they’re actually a good read. Our duty is to protect, you know, our data for our business and our users.”
In August 2023, Reddit struck deals with AI companies including Google and OpenAI. These agreements are accompanied by licenses that allow these firms to legally copyright Reddit’s data. These innovative partnerships end up serving all constituents well. They push each other to create superior products for their jointly served customers. Huffman expressed optimism regarding these relationships: “We’ve realized the value of Reddit’s data and learned the ways we can collaborate to make our mutual products better for our mutual customers. I look forward to progressing these relationships.”
See below for Lee’s testimony on the dangers presented by data scrapers. Often, he said, these scrapers go around technological protections to illegally scrape data from Reddit and other sites, only to sell that scraped data for profit. He remarked, “Scrapers bypass technological protections to steal data, then sell it to clients hungry for training material. Reddit is a prime target because it’s one of the largest and most dynamic collections of human conversation ever created.”
Even through all of these legal fights, Huffman has continued to assert that Reddit’s marketplace for advertising is healthy. The stringent metrics help the company continue to just catapult effective solutions toward its advertisers. Yet, at the same time, it deftly dodges the larger economic headwinds in the tech sector.
