Meta workers can opt out of being tracked at work up to 30 min
Meta scaled back its employee keystroke and click tracking tool, allowing 30-minute opt-out windows after staff backlash.
Meta announced in April that it would track employees' keystrokes and mouse clicks via its Model Capability Initiative (MCI) tool to train AI models on how people use computers. The initiative faced swift criticism: employees launched a petition exceeding 1,500 signatures, and workers described the tool as dystopian. Some reported the tool drained battery life and caused internet usage surges for remote workers. In a June memo from Superintelligence Labs VP Stephane Kasriel, Meta said it would introduce "optimizations" allowing employees to pause data collection for up to 30 minutes at a time and request full exemptions. The company maintains its privacy safeguards underwent multiple risk reviews, but acknowledged concerns about personal data, battery life, and user control.
What HN community is saying
Commenters treated the 30-minute limit as inadequate corporate theater. Top-voted concerns centered on surveillance chilling effects: opting out would likely be tracked and penalized via performance reviews or hidden metrics, executives would never face equivalent tracking, and the opt-out window itself might receive heightened scrutiny. Several high-ranked comments voiced broader industry frustration, with engineers in their 40s discussing exit strategies from tech via career pivots, financial independence, or early retirement. One thread noted the irony that tech workers comfortable profiting from user surveillance blanch when reciprocal workplace monitoring arrives. A minority comment argued such organizational problems exist across all industries and that tech pay provides a real hedge against instability found in service-sector alternatives.