psa: github ushering in ai copilot soon

brent

seen today at my account:

hot take: I don't care as I am a bug reporter/reader. It does not pertain to me.
Some won't feel that way as copilot will vacuum up all the existing code for "training" from its users already using co-pilot.

Seems like a reasonable assumption those already using co-pilot knew their stuff was getting vacuumed up before this official announcement.

"Today, we’re announcing an update on how GitHub will use data to deliver more intelligent, context-aware coding assistance. From April 24 onward, interaction data—specifically inputs, outputs, code snippets, and associated context—from Copilot Free, Pro, and Pro+ users will be used to train and improve our AI models unless they opt out. "

Does not effect developers not using co-pilot or Pro, which, I imagine, are most of them. (?).
There is an opt-out for reporters like me and devs like you

It's incorporation seems minimal/non-alarming in scope to my eyes.

Clintre

They like to hide the settings. But opted out right away.

brent

Clintre But opted out right away.

I assume because you didn't want your code/programs vacuumed up?
Are you a Pro or Pro+ user? (edit had to add ? mark)
Just trying to understand their context re: their wording

Harvey

I too disabled it, why would I want to help them train their shitty AI for free.

But the reality is if your content is public, someone's AI is training on it and the law does nothing about it. Meta got sued for using copyrighted works to train their AI, Meta won.

The US district judge Vince Chhabria, in San Francisco, said in his decision on the Meta case that the authors had not presented enough evidence that the technology company’s AI would cause “market dilution” by flooding the market with work similar to theirs. As a consequence Meta’s use of their work was judged a “fair use” – a legal doctrine that allows use of copyright protected work without permission – and no copyright liability applied.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/26/meta-wins-ai-copyright-lawsuit-as-us-judge-rules-against-authors

Torrenting books to train AI... totally fine guys, nothing to see here: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jan/10/mark-zuckerberg-meta-books-ai-models-sarah-silverman

brent

Harvey . As a consequence Meta’s use of their work was judged a “fair use” – a legal doctrine that allows use of copyright protected work without permission – and no copyright liability applied.

questionable decision by judge since I doubt "market dilution" was the main point the plaintiff was selling. that would be weird to me.
fair use is sacred to academia because it allows students to be educated by bits and pieces of an important work without using the whole work. Nothing is stolen, the entirety and its integrity preserved. Just a theme/theory/section relayed. Doesn't seem to be the same thing going on here in corporate.
I'm afraid to read the second link...

mkl

All freely accessible content has already been scanned multiple times by some AI models anyway. We shouldn't delude ourselves about that anymore...
Codeberg might also establish itself as an increasingly serious alternative.
Not that I think AIs aren't gathering information there. But there's no Microsoft or similar company behind it.

brent

mkl All freely accessible content has already been scanned multiple times by some AI models anyway. We shouldn't delude ourselves about that anymore...

yep. the fakery on display here by them ("opt out") in light of all the "accessible content" freely vacuumed up already feels like what we call in the states as bait-and-switch.

Solarmass

I disabled this too

brent

@Clintre @Harvey @Solarmass

how do I kill it all?

for as many features as I am allowed to disable, I am not allowed (grayed out) to disable half of them

Harvey

Its confusing, I believe it has no disable option because its not something that makes sense to disable.

Copilot CLI
You can use Github Copilot for assistance in terminal

Copilot in Github Desktop
You can use Github Copilot for assistance in Github Desktop

How would one disable an optional feature that requires you to install something else to use it and then manually run it? Its not a setting, you just don't install and run things you do not wish to use, which begs the question why is it in settings?

brent

Harvey How would one disable an optional feature that requires you to install something else to use use and then manually run it?

I see your point.

Harvey which begs the question why is it in settings.

yep

thanks for getting back quick. leave it to MS...