Reddit, Quora, and Yahoo Launch RSL to Regulate AI Data Scraping
Reddit, Quora, Yahoo, and other digital publishers have announced Really Simple Licensing (RSL), a decentralized protocol designed to regulate AI data scraping. This system allows AI companies like Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI to use online content for training without facing lawsuits. The initiative comes after multiple AI chatbots, including ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude, faced legal action for allegedly using data without permission, with Anthropic recently settling a copyright lawsuit for $1.5 billion.
RSL, developed by the non-profit RSL Collective, is based on the widely used Really Simple Syndication (RSS) standard. Consequently, it can manage digital content such as web pages, books, datasets, and videos across millions of sites. Moreover, it operates at scale, allowing automated tools and web crawlers to process licensing terms efficiently, without manual input.
How RSL Works and Its Challenges
Despite its promise, no AI company has yet agreed to RSL’s licensing terms. The collective’s co-founders, Doug Leeds and Eckart Walther, insist that the protocol provides everything needed for safe AI data scraping. “We need to have machine-readable licensing agreements for the internet. That’s really what RSL solves,” Walther said.
Over the years, organizations like the Dataset Providers Alliance have promoted transparent data collection practices, but RSL is the first attempt to create a practical, scalable system. Several publishers, including Medium, Mashable, CNET, and WebMD, have already joined the initiative. However, adoption by major tech giants remains uncertain.
The Broader Impact on AI and Publishing
Currently, more than a dozen lawsuits are pending in U.S. courts against AI companies, alleging unauthorized data usage for AI training. Google’s AI Overview has also faced scrutiny for displaying AI-generated summaries above search results, which many publishers claim caused a noticeable drop in their website traffic.
If widely adopted, RSL could help balance AI innovation with content ownership rights. Furthermore, it may provide publishers and AI developers a framework to collaborate safely while reducing legal disputes. However, the protocol’s effectiveness ultimately depends on whether major AI companies embrace its standards.
