Walling Off the Open Internet to Stop AI May End Up Breaking Everything Else

9 hn_acker 6 9/8/2025, 6:05:20 PM techdirt.com ↗

Comments (6)

jnxx · 1h ago
The argument is like it is unethical to lock my front door because this also stops people which genuinely only want to enter to have a look at my living room.

That's not how boundaries work.

rolph · 50m ago
thats right, no AI queries, means exactly that.

just like signs such as no trespassing: active shooting range; or apiary[bee] yard; or open shaft mines, means that exactly, and in my region, signage is sufficient no gate or fence required.

every so often someone thinks they are too important for that to apply and they find out the signage is no joke when they encounter the target line, and backstop being hit from somewhere uprange; or violate the space of a bee hive; or fall into a shaft. some even have the nerve to complain this is a threat.

robots.txt == no trespassing == stay out unless invited

traspler · 48m ago
„Hey I have this nice picture in my living room. If you want to see it just come by.“ - People actually do. - „How dare they!“
HardwareLust · 1h ago
Note that this is a major plot point in Cyberpunk 2077 lore.
JohnFen · 47m ago
genAI itself is rapidly rendering large portions of the web worthless and/or unsustainable, so it seems that the web is doomed either way.
hn_acker · 1h ago
The original title is:

> We're Walling Off The Open Internet To Stop AI—And It May End Up Breaking Everything Else