Every Company Building Your AI Assistant Is Now an Ad Company
Hacker News
February 20, 2026
AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary
Every major company building AI assistants is now funded by advertising, creating a conflict of interest as these firms design hardware that constantly monitors users. OpenAI’s recent ad integration in ChatGPT and their acquisition of Jony Ive’s hardware startup highlight this trend. While policies like data encryption and anonymization are touted, they often fail to protect against misuse, as seen with Google’s past scanning of Gmail for ads. The real issue lies in the architecture: cloud-based systems inherently expose user data through multiple points, including third-party vendors and government requests.
The shift towards always-on AI is inevitable. Current wake-word systems, like "Hey Siri" or "OK Google," are outdated for proactive assistance. Modern AI needs to be present continuously, listening and observing to build contextual awareness. This evolution means devices will collect vast amounts of data through audio, vision, and wearables, creating comprehensive user profiles.
The problem is structural: advertising-funded companies prioritize data collection for targeting, often compromising privacy. While local on-device inference offers a solution by processing data without transmission, it’s not yet widely adopted. Users are left trusting policies that can change, while the technology remains fixed. This matters because tech enthusiasts and privacy-conscious consumers need more reliable safeguards to protect their data in an increasingly connected world.
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Originally published on Hacker News on 2/20/2026