A new app, NEON, is paying users 15 cents per minute to record their phone calls for artificial intelligence (AI) training purposes, raising privacy and legal concerns. The company collects the audio data to improve its speech recognition and language models, but the terms of service place significant liability on participants.
NEON’s terms explicitly prohibit users from selling or licensing recordings of their own calls to third parties, making them liable to NEON should they do so. Participants also waive any claims regarding how NEON or its customers utilize the recordings. Furthermore, users assume responsibility for any infringement of third-party rights occurring during the calls – such as reciting copyrighted material or humming a protected melody – which could lead to costly legal issues if incorporated into large language models.Users are also liable if they use the app in locations where it is prohibited. Conversely, NEON is barred from fraudulent practices, including manipulating recordings or engaging in one-sided conversations to generate data.
The app’s terms, as reported by Heise Online, highlight the complex legal landscape surrounding AI data collection and the potential risks for individuals contributing to these datasets. While offering a small financial incentive,the agreement shifts considerable legal responsibility onto the user,possibly exposing them to unforeseen liabilities.