Google Is Quietly Buying Code from Play Store Developers to Train AI
Google is reportedly purchasing code from Android app developers to enhance its AI coding tools. The initiative aims to provide developers with additional revenue while retaining their intellectual property rights. This move highlights Google's efforts to catch up in the competitive AI landscape, where it has lagged behind rivals like Microsoft and Anthropic.
- ▪Google has emailed app developers offering to buy access to their codebases.
- ▪The program is described as a confidential content offer pilot aimed at generating additional revenue for developers.
- ▪Developers would retain intellectual property rights and the license would be non-exclusive.
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Google has quietly been offering to buy access to code written by developers who have released Android apps on the Play Store in order to help the company train its AI coding tools, 404 Media has learned.Google has emailed some app developers with an offer to “join a confidential content offer pilot,” that will allow developers to “generate additional revenue from your apps,” according to an email sent to the developer of an Android app that has millions of downloads. Google’s email says that the company wants to buy access to developers’ codebases “to help improve Google’s developer tools and products.” 404 Media granted the developer anonymity because they feared retaliation from the company for sharing info about what was described as a “confidential” program.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at 404 Media.
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