Introduction

The internet is growing at an exponential pace. According to Statista and IDC, the amount of global data generated is doubling roughly every two years, a trend driven by everything from social media, IoT devices, streaming content, and the explosion of user-generated information. In 2024 alone, it’s estimated that the total volume of data will exceed 175 zettabytes – a number almost unfathomable compared to just a decade ago.

However, despite this exponential growth, the amount of high-quality data available for AI training is shrinking. It’s a paradox that arises not from scarcity, but from increased restrictions and control over data usage. The rapid decline of openly accessible web content for AI training is creating a dearth of valuable data, with significant implications for businesses looking to harness AI.

Why is the Training Data Shrinking?

A recent study by MIT (2024) highlights this trend, showing how data restrictions are rising rapidly:

Robots.txt Policies: Websites are increasingly using robots.txt files to restrict crawlers from accessing or indexing their content. Over the last eight years, the percentage of restricted domains has surged dramatically.
Terms of Service Limitations: More and more websites are explicitly prohibiting AI companies from using their data in training models. This shift reflects growing concerns about intellectual property and value capture.
Paywalls and Monetization: Premium content behind paywalls remains inaccessible to web crawlers and data scraping systems.

Ironically, even though the total amount of data online might be sixteen times greater than it was eight years ago, the absolute volume of usable training data has decreased significantly.

The Value of Private Data has Never Been Higher

As more public websites lock down access to their data, privately held data is becoming increasingly valuable. For companies with robust internal datasets – whether stored on internal intranets, CRM systems, or proprietary databases – there is a significant opportunity to capitalize on this trend. AI models trained on high-quality, domain-specific data can deliver transformative outcomes:

Increased Accuracy: Customized AI models trained on your data understand your business processes, customers, and workflows better than generalized models.
Competitive Advantage: In an era where public data is becoming less accessible, your proprietary data is an untapped goldmine.
Privacy and Control: Training AI on your owned data ensures compliance with privacy regulations and eliminates reliance on external, restricted sources.

Farpoint: Experts in Unlocking the Value of Your Data

At Farpoint, we specialize in training AI models on your data – data that you own, control, and derive value from. Whether it’s optimizing workflows, automating repetitive tasks, or augmenting your team’s decision-making processes, our AI solutions are designed to deliver measurable impact.

As the public AI training commons continue to shrink, the data you already possess is becoming your greatest asset.

Get Involved

Don't let limited access to data hinder your AI initiatives. By leveraging our AI research teams, we can unlock hidden potential and significantly improve the performance of your AI models. Contact us today to learn more about how Farpoint can help your business harness the power of the latest AI innovations.