OpenAI · OpenAI Business Terms · View original document ↗

Content License Grant

Medium severity Medium confidence Explicitdocumentlanguage Uncommon · 19 of 343 platforms
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Recent governance activity OpenAI recorded 26 documented changes in the last 30 days.
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Document Record

What it is

Users grant OpenAI a worldwide, royalty-free license to use, copy, store, modify, and display content they submit, with the stated purpose of providing, maintaining, and improving the services.

This analysis describes what OpenAI's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology

ConductAtlas Analysis

Why it matters (compliance & governance perspective)

This provision grants OpenAI rights to use submitted content for service improvement purposes in addition to service delivery. The scope of 'improve our Services' may include model training activities, though the document's stated purpose language limits the license to service-related uses.

Interpretive note: The scope of 'improve our Services' is not exhaustively defined in the document; whether this includes model training specifically may depend on additional OpenAI policies and product-specific configurations.

Change history

modified May 26, 2026

Narrowed scope by removing rights to 'distribute,' 'create derivative works,' 'develop the Services,' and 'comply with applicable law'; added 'store' and 'display'; replaced 'inputs and outputs' with 'Content'; and restricted use to 'solely' providing, maintaining, and improving Services.

View full change record →

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

Under this clause, content users input into OpenAI's services may be used by OpenAI to maintain and improve its services, in addition to delivering responses. The agreement states the license is non-exclusive and royalty-free, meaning users retain ownership of their content but grant OpenAI these use rights.

What you can do

⚠️ These actions may provide transparency or partial mitigation but may not fully address the underlying issue. Effectiveness varies by jurisdiction and individual circumstances.
  • Opt Out of Arbitration
    Log into your OpenAI account, navigate to account or privacy settings, and review options to opt out of content being used for model training or service improvement purposes where such controls are available.

How other platforms handle this

Kajabi Medium

"Content" means anything you or your Customers create or make available through the Service in connection with your Account, including your intellectual property (e.g. trademarks, trade names, service marks, and copyrighted works); the products or services you offer (e.g., courses, coaching, members...

ConvertKit Medium

By posting, uploading, inputting, providing or submitting your Content you grant Kit, its affiliated companies and necessary sublicensees permission to use your Content in connection with the operation of their Internet businesses including, without limitation, the rights to: copy, distribute, trans...

Epic Games Medium

By submitting, sharing, or otherwise making User-Generated Content available through any of the Licensed Products, including by submitting User-Generated Content using UEFN, you grant Epic a royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, sublicensable, worldwide license to use, reproduce, modi...

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▸ View Original Clause Language DOCUMENT RECORD
"
By using our Services, you grant OpenAI a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use, copy, store, modify, and display your Content solely to provide, maintain, and improve our Services.

— Excerpt from OpenAI's OpenAI Business Terms

ConductAtlas Analysis

Institutional analysis (Compliance & governance intelligence)

(1) REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: This provision engages GDPR Article 6 lawful basis requirements for processing personal data contained in user inputs, and CCPA disclosure obligations regarding how user-submitted data is used. Where inputs contain personal data of EU or UK residents, the license grant must be supported by a valid lawful basis. The relevant enforcement authorities include the Irish Data Protection Commission (as OpenAI's EU lead supervisory authority), the UK ICO, and the California Privacy Protection Agency. (2) GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Medium. The 'improve our Services' scope may encompass model training, which is a material data use consideration for enterprise customers and operators who submit business-sensitive or personal data via the API. The terms authorize operators to opt out of training data use through separate API settings, which partially mitigates this exposure. (3) JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU/EEA and UK users submitting personal data have the most significant exposure, as processing for model improvement may require explicit consent or another valid lawful basis under GDPR. California users have CCPA rights to know about and limit certain uses of their personal information. (4) CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Enterprise and API operators should review whether a Data Processing Agreement is in place with OpenAI, as the license grant in the consumer terms does not constitute a DPA. Operators should confirm whether their API configuration disables training data use for business-sensitive inputs. (5) COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Data mapping exercises should account for the types of personal data submitted via OpenAI services and the downstream processing authorized by this license. Operators deploying OpenAI to end users should ensure their own privacy notices accurately describe OpenAI's data use practices consistent with this clause.

Full compliance analysis

Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.

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Applicable agencies

  • FTC
    The FTC has enforcement authority over unfair or deceptive data practices, including representations about how user-submitted content is used.
    File a complaint →

Applicable regulations

DSA
European Union

Provision details

Document information
Document
OpenAI Business Terms
Entity
OpenAI
Document last updated
May 11, 2026
Tracking information
First tracked
May 21, 2026
Last verified
May 21, 2026
Record ID
CA-P-012677
Document ID
CA-D-00755
Evidence Provenance
Source URL
Wayback Machine
Content hash (SHA-256)
6bcccb90a775c54c7b7d211635409fb466dbe6ee712be486b3d17f2120003b35
Analysis generated
May 21, 2026 00:13 UTC
Methodology
Evidence
✓ Snapshot stored   ✓ Hash verified
Citation Record
Entity: OpenAI
Document: OpenAI Business Terms
Record ID: CA-P-012677
Captured: 2026-05-21 00:13:45 UTC
SHA-256: 6bcccb90a775c54c…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/openai/openai-business-terms/content-license-grant/
Accessed: June 8, 2026
Permanent archival reference. Stable identifier suitable for legal filings, compliance documentation, and research citation.
Classification
Severity
Medium
Categories

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Frequently Asked Questions

What does OpenAI's Content License Grant clause do?

This provision grants OpenAI rights to use submitted content for service improvement purposes in addition to service delivery. The scope of 'improve our Services' may include model training activities, though the document's stated purpose language limits the license to service-related uses.

How does this clause affect you?

Under this clause, content users input into OpenAI's services may be used by OpenAI to maintain and improve its services, in addition to delivering responses. The agreement states the license is non-exclusive and royalty-free, meaning users retain ownership of their content but grant OpenAI these use rights.

How many platforms have this type of clause?

ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 19 platforms. See the full comparison.

Is ConductAtlas affiliated with OpenAI?

No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by OpenAI.