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answer: direct
beat: ai-industry
source: 1 article · updated: July 3, 2026
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Did Meta really pirate books to train its AI?

Court filings in ongoing litigation allege Meta downloaded roughly 267 terabytes of copyrighted books from shadow libraries to train its Llama models, reportedly to avoid licensing costs while leaning on a fair-use legal defense. Meta has not conceded wrongdoing and the cases remain in litigation.

Answered in

Meta Didn’t Lose the Future. It Lost the Plot

Meta burned $80B on the metaverse, pirated books for AI, and hid debt in Enron-style deals. Here's the strategic collapse, reportedly, in order.

Crashtech Editorial July 3, 2026 AI Business & Money

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