Meta pauses employee activity tracker used for AI training

The Guardian reported that Meta has paused its Model Capability Initiative, a program that collected employee computer-use data for AI training. More than 1,600 workers signed a petition objecting to the collection of keystrokes, mouse clicks, and screen content, warning about consent and workplace privacy. Wired had reported that internal MCI data included prompts, transcriptions, private conversations, and performance information accessible inside the company. Meta said it had designed privacy safeguards and had no indication of improper access, but paused the program while it investigates.

Key details: Published June 24, 2026 at 21:38 AEST, More than 1,600 Meta workers signed a petition against the tool, The program collected computer-use data to train AI models, Meta said it paused the program while it investigates.

Why it matters: The story shows the privacy fight moving inside AI labs and platforms: companies want richer work data for agents, but employees are pushing back on surveillance-like collection.