Most of the top AI companies lack transparency in how they use and retain user data
An analysis of 500 AI companies’ privacy policies reveals that 63% of AI companies don’t clearly disclose whether they train on user data, while 65% don’t disclose exact retention periods
- 63% of the top AI companies don't clearly disclose whether they train their AI models on user data. 42% of companies do not address AI training on user data in their privacy policies at all, while 21% provide only vague information.
- This does not necessarily mean that 63% of companies use user data for AI training. However, it does mean that the companies are not transparent enough.
- 65% of companies do not clearly disclose how long they retain user data. Of these, 9% do not mention data retention or deletion at all, while 56% address it only vaguely, without providing precise retention periods.
Cybernews has recently launched the AI Trustworthiness Ranking 2026, which evaluates 500 AI companies from 36 countries based on publicly available information related to data privacy, security, organizational transparency, and public perception. Each company receives an Overall Trustworthiness Score from 0 to 100, calculated from the four weighted pillars.
For the Data Privacy pillar, Cybernews analyzed the privacy policies of all 500 companies to assess how clearly they explain how they collect, share, use, and retain user data.
63% don't clearly disclose whether they train their AI models on user data
The analysis found that 42% of companies do not address AI training on user data in their privacy policies at all, while 21% provide only vague information. Together, this means that 63% do not clearly disclose whether they use user data to train their AI models.
This does not necessarily mean that 63% of companies use user data for AI training. However, it does mean that the companies are not transparent enough on this.
According to Voldemaras Kadys, member of the AI Trustworthiness Ranking Advisory Board and Head of Security and Platform Engineering at Mediatech, the digital publishing house behind Cybernews, clear disclosures are especially important because AI tools can have access to highly sensitive information.
“People use AI tools for everything these days, and they give those tools access to their most sensitive data – private conversations, emails, work documents. Some people even share their deepest secrets with AI chatbots.
That’s why it’s so important for users to clearly understand what is done with their data – what companies collect, whether they use it to train AI models, who they share it with, and how long they retain it. These are basic questions that should have clear answers. People shouldn’t have to interpret vague language or struggle to understand how their data is being used. Companies need to be transparent.”
65% don't clearly disclose how long they retain user data
The analysis also found that 65% of companies do not clearly disclose how long they retain user data. Of these, 9% do not mention data retention or deletion at all, while 56% address it only vaguely, without providing precise retention periods.
If a company doesn’t have a defined retention period, users have no way of knowing how long their information stays with a company after it has been collected. When AI tools have access to sensitive personal or business information, this information is especially important.
“The findings show that many of the leading AI companies aren’t transparent enough about what happens to user data once it’s collected. Hopefully, AI companies can take this information as a lesson, and it will also teach people to be more careful when choosing the companies they trust with their data,” comments V. Kadys.
Explore the full AI Trustworthiness Ranking and individual company scores here: https://cybernews.com/ai-knowledge-base/ai-trustworthiness-ranking-2026/