Stack Overflow's new deal to give OpenAI access to its API as a data source has outraged users who posted questions and answers about coding issues in conversations with other humans. Users claim that when they try to change their posts in protest, the site retaliates by reversing the changes and suspending the users who made the changes.
A programmer named Ben posted a screenshot of the changelog for a post asking for programming advice yesterday, but it was updated to say he had deleted the question to protest the contract with OpenAI. “This move takes away the effort of everyone who contributed to Stack Overflow, with no way to opt out,” the updated post reads.
The text was returned within an hour. Messages from moderators, including Ben, say that once a Stack Overflow post is made, it becomes “part of a collaborative effort” with other contributors and should only be removed “in special circumstances.” It is stated. The moderation team then announced they would suspend his account for a week, pending contact “to avoid further misunderstandings.”
Like other platforms that derive value from user-generated content, Stack Overflow owns user contributions. As part of the terms of service, users “cannot revoke their permission” for the site to use anything they contribute to the platform. However, this site uses a Creative Commons 4.0 license and requires attribution. When OpenAI and Stack Overflow announced their partnership earlier this week, OpenAI said it would attribute ChatGPT answers if they came from the platform. Google says this is also a feature of a similar deal Stack Overflow has with Google for Gemini Cloud.
The problem that remains is the lack of transparency about where the chatbot's answers are coming from. If ChatGPT or another bot answers a question and some of it is not in the cited source, was it an illusion or did it come from somewhere else?
Stack Overflow did not immediately respond to a request for comment on this story.