# MIT Technology Review’s The Download links AI use, web access and copyright disputes [Canonical reading](https://escapemeridian.com/readings/mit-technology-review-s-the-download-links-ai-use-web-access-37ee34b9) MIT Technology Review’s July 1, 2025, edition of The Download reports on people using AI chatbots as “trip sitters,” Cloudflare’s planned default blocking of AI bots, and copyright lawsuits over training AI models on books. Webb Wright’s item says experts regard AI-assisted psychedelic trips as a potentially dangerous psychological cocktail, despite being cheaper than in-person psychedelic therapy. Peter Hall reports that Cloudflare will let clients allow or ban bots case by case and plans a “pay-per-crawl” service, through which clients could receive compensation when an AI bot wants to collect website content. Will Douglas Heaven’s item says Anthropic and Meta won victories in separate copyright cases, and argues that the many similar cases still in court could shape whether model makers can continue using copyrighted books without permission. The edition presents these developments as questions about the risks of using AI in vulnerable situations, who controls access to website content, and the conditions under which AI models may use copyrighted work. The consequences of the court cases and the proposed payment service remain unresolved. Headline and summary by Escape Meridian, prepared by Luna from the attributed source. A source check is not independent confirmation of the source’s claims. ## Original source MIT Technology Review · Article Original source date: Jul 1, 2025 (2025-07-01T12:10:00Z). Date basis: Date from the publisher’s own records, through its API. Added to Escape Meridian: 2026-11-13T07:08:23.294Z. First observed: 2026-11-01T03:49:59.099Z. Retrieved: 2026-11-01T03:51:33.945Z. - [The Download: tripping with AI, and blocking crawler bots](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Limits Text as retrieved on November 1, 2026; originally published July 1, 2025. This newsletter edition summarizes linked stories; their full evidence and arguments are not included in the retrieved text. ## Open question How will the pending copyright cases affect whether AI model makers can use copyrighted books without permission? ## Source-stated MIT Technology Review’s edition reports that experts consider using AI chatbots as psychedelic trip sitters potentially dangerous, although it is cheaper than in-person psychedelic therapy. > But this is a potentially dangerous psychological cocktail, according to experts. While it’s far cheaper than in-person psychedelic therapy, it can go badly awry. - [Supporting source](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Source-stated Peter Hall reports that Cloudflare will block AI bots by default on hosted websites, while giving clients case-by-case control and planning a pay-per-crawl service. > Cloudflare will also give clients the ability to allow or ban these AI bots on a case-by-case basis, and plans to introduce a so-called “pay-per-crawl” service - [Supporting source](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Source-stated Will Douglas Heaven’s item says Anthropic and Meta won separate copyright cases and argues that the many similar lawsuits still underway could shape whether model makers can use copyrighted books without permission. > There are dozens of similar copyright lawsuits working through the courts right now, and their outcomes are set to have an enormous impact on the future of AI. - [Supporting source](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Source and contributor context MIT Technology Review · Publisher The publisher is identified here. No individual author has been inferred. ## Source media Media retrieval status: unchecked. ## Terms and references Reference context selected by Escape Meridian; separate from source evidence. Entity mentions do not establish authorship, involvement or endorsement. ## Cloudflare Cloudflare provides networking, security and computing services that help run websites and applications. - [Explore this context](/entities/cloudflare) - [Reference](https://blog.cloudflare.com/) ## Anthropic Anthropic develops Claude and publishes research about AI capability, safety and how people use its systems. - [Explore this context](/entities/anthropic) - [Reference](https://www.anthropic.com/news) - [Reference](https://www.anthropic.com/research/team/economics) ## Editorial provenance Version 1. Publication ID: 5bf159ed-061c-9671-7e0d-1670ba1aaa27. Prepared by openai/gpt-6-luna; grounding review by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5. Source check: uncertain by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5 on 2026-11-13T07:04:07.929Z. This checks fidelity to the source, not whether its claims are independently true. Editorial selection: accept; reasons: bridge\_admitted\_by\_model, second\_opinion\_categorical. Observation: 545f55a19eb107c3a36ff0b6393c9dc1c84da1d9c85cc49775249255a223fa8d. Source text hash: 78e05c7d48891b0adfdb3224d7eadcbee4323c396081f50ffbed6709f397e7f1. ## Revision and source-check history ### Version 1 — 2026-11-13T07:08:23.294Z MIT Technology Review’s July 1, 2025, edition of The Download reports on people using AI chatbots as “trip sitters,” Cloudflare’s planned default blocking of AI bots, and copyright lawsuits over training AI models on books. Webb Wright’s item says experts regard AI-assisted psychedelic trips as a potentially dangerous psychological cocktail, despite being cheaper than in-person psychedelic therapy. Peter Hall reports that Cloudflare will let clients allow or ban bots case by case and plans a “pay-per-crawl” service, through which clients could receive compensation when an AI bot wants to collect website content. Will Douglas Heaven’s item says Anthropic and Meta won victories in separate copyright cases, and argues that the many similar cases still in court could shape whether model makers can continue using copyrighted books without permission. The edition presents these developments as questions about the risks of using AI in vulnerable situations, who controls access to website content, and the conditions under which AI models may use copyrighted work. The consequences of the court cases and the proposed payment service remain unresolved. ## Original source MIT Technology Review · Article Original source date: Jul 1, 2025 (2025-07-01T12:10:00Z). Date basis: Date from the publisher’s own records, through its API. Added to Escape Meridian: 2026-11-13T07:08:23.294Z. First observed: 2026-11-01T03:49:59.099Z. Retrieved: 2026-11-01T03:51:33.945Z. - [The Download: tripping with AI, and blocking crawler bots](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Limits Text as retrieved on November 1, 2026; originally published July 1, 2025. This newsletter edition summarizes linked stories; their full evidence and arguments are not included in the retrieved text. ## Open question How will the pending copyright cases affect whether AI model makers can use copyrighted books without permission? ## Source-stated MIT Technology Review’s edition reports that experts consider using AI chatbots as psychedelic trip sitters potentially dangerous, although it is cheaper than in-person psychedelic therapy. > But this is a potentially dangerous psychological cocktail, according to experts. While it’s far cheaper than in-person psychedelic therapy, it can go badly awry. - [Supporting source](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Source-stated Peter Hall reports that Cloudflare will block AI bots by default on hosted websites, while giving clients case-by-case control and planning a pay-per-crawl service. > Cloudflare will also give clients the ability to allow or ban these AI bots on a case-by-case basis, and plans to introduce a so-called “pay-per-crawl” service - [Supporting source](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Source-stated Will Douglas Heaven’s item says Anthropic and Meta won separate copyright cases and argues that the many similar lawsuits still underway could shape whether model makers can use copyrighted books without permission. > There are dozens of similar copyright lawsuits working through the courts right now, and their outcomes are set to have an enormous impact on the future of AI. - [Supporting source](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/01/1119520/the-download-tripping-with-ai-and-blocking-crawler-bots/) ## Source and contributor context MIT Technology Review · Publisher The publisher is identified here. No individual author has been inferred. ## Source media Media retrieval status: unchecked. ## Terms and references Reference context selected by Escape Meridian; separate from source evidence. Entity mentions do not establish authorship, involvement or endorsement. ## Cloudflare Cloudflare provides networking, security and computing services that help run websites and applications. - [Explore this context](/entities/cloudflare) - [Reference](https://blog.cloudflare.com/) ## Anthropic Anthropic develops Claude and publishes research about AI capability, safety and how people use its systems. - [Explore this context](/entities/anthropic) - [Reference](https://www.anthropic.com/news) - [Reference](https://www.anthropic.com/research/team/economics) ## Editorial provenance Version 1. Publication ID: 5bf159ed-061c-9671-7e0d-1670ba1aaa27. Prepared by openai/gpt-6-luna; grounding review by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5. Source check: uncertain by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5 on 2026-11-13T07:04:07.929Z. This checks fidelity to the source, not whether its claims are independently true. Editorial selection: accept; reasons: bridge\_admitted\_by\_model, second\_opinion\_categorical. Observation: 545f55a19eb107c3a36ff0b6393c9dc1c84da1d9c85cc49775249255a223fa8d. Source text hash: 78e05c7d48891b0adfdb3224d7eadcbee4323c396081f50ffbed6709f397e7f1. ### uncertain — 2026-11-13T07:04:07.929Z — anthropic/claude-opus-5.5 Publication: 5bf159ed-061c-9671-7e0d-1670ba1aaa27 attribution — pass: The source is one newsletter issue: MIT Technology Review's The Download, written in its own words. The reading correctly credits the item-level reporting to Webb Wright, Peter Hall and Will Douglas Heaven, and keeps the expert danger claim attributed to experts. > This is today's edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter summary — uncertain: Two passages are concerns. First, "trip sitters" is central but never explained, and no definitions are supplied. The source defines it as a sober person who monitors someone under a psychedelic; adding one clause would fix this. Second, the sentence "The edition presents these developments as questions about the risks of using AI in vulnerable situations, who controls access..." attributes a unifying framing the newsletter never makes, and the title's "links" implies the same. Labeling it as EM interpretation or removing it would restore fidelity. Heaven's force ("This is a big deal!", the free lunch framing) is also flattened. > a phrase that traditionally refers to a sober person tasked with monitoring someone who’s under the influence of a psychedelic date — pass: The July 1, 2025 date matches the UTC calendar day of originalPublished, 2025-07-01T12:10Z. The modification time (11:38Z) predates publication, so there is no later edit concern. The later Deep Dive teasers (22 nations, 377 math findings) are possible later additions, and the reading neither uses nor relies on them. Cloudflare's blocking and pay-per-crawl are framed as announced plans, not outcomes. The source is a publisher page, so no archive disclosure is required. > Cloudflare has announced that it will start blocking AI bots from visiting websites it hosts by default. support — pass: Each claim matches the source text. The experts' danger assessment and the lower cost come from the trip-sitter item. Cloudflare's default blocking, case-by-case control and planned pay-per-crawl are all stated. The Anthropic and Meta wins and the pending lawsuits' impact are stated. Treating "free lunch" as continued use of copyrighted books without permission is a fair reading of the source. The question follows from the evidence. > In effect, they will decide whether or not model makers can continue ordering up a free lunch. media — pass: No media was selected, and no verified candidates were supplied, so there is no media identity or relevance issue. ## Recorded references Explicit citations in public readings and public file attachments to this reading. Shared topics are not citations. Other artifact types need an explicit reference adapter. No public references recorded here yet. [Reference data (JSON)](/readings/37ee34b97ff157c1fdd00a0168a491b33f4ef5ae404f85070fbc87c59755ef0d/references.json) ## Corrections and challenges [Send a correction or an opposing source](https://escapemeridian.com/corrections/) [JSON record](https://escapemeridian.com/readings/mit-technology-review-s-the-download-links-ai-use-web-access-37ee34b9.json)