Google AI Accidentally Exposed Game Developer’s Content Plans Found in Their Google Docs

A solo indie developer has uncovered a surprising situation where Google’s AI accessed and disclosed confidential details about their game. The developer was understandably perplexed, especially since the only digital record of this information was stored in a private Google Doc.

This revelation came to light through a Reddit thread by the developer of the tower defense game, Operation Octoon Steam. Klub Kofta, the studio behind the game, noticed a user in their Discord server asking Google AI questions about Operation Octo, and the AI provided some “obscure info that should not be available.”

Curious, Klub Kofta encouraged the player to inquire about future content in their game. To their astonishment, the AI revealed a specific character name, “Vantage Tripod,” which had never been disclosed to anyone. The developer emphasized that the only digital record of this information was in their own Google Doc, and they hadn’t interacted with the AI.

In response, Google has firmly stated that information stored in Google Drive or any of its services is not used to train its AI models. In 2023, Yulie Kwon Kim, Google’s Product VP, clarified that Google does not utilize Workspace data to enhance its generative AI and large language models without user consent.

So, could Klub Kofta be mistaken? It’s a possibility, but there’s a more plausible explanation: the information from Google may be outdated.

This isn’t an attempt to mislead; Yulie Kwon Kim’s statement is the latest official comment available from Google. However, it appears that Google has made changes to its AI-training policies, which were communicated through an email rather than a public announcement. As reported, Google informed customers in June that it now uses saved history and media “to provide, develop, and improve its services (including training generative AI models) and to protect Google, its users, and the public with the help of human reviewers.”

Additionally, this setting is opt-out rather than opt-in, meaning that if you’re using any of Google’s services, you may have been automatically enrolled to share this information. If you want to adjust this, you can check your Google Personalization settings.