AI firms reportedly buy 50-ton Japanese book haul for scanning and destruction
Japanese used bookstores report a fivefold sales surge from bulk orders, often for hundreds or thousands of books at a time. Many shipments go to a logistics center in Okayama Prefecture, where books are sent abroad for AI scanning and destruction, according to NTV Japan. A 50-ton consignment of Japanese books was reportedly sent to the US for processing by Anthropic, a practice previously…
Key points
- Japanese used bookstores see 5x sales surge from bulk orders, often for hundreds or thousands of books
- 50-ton shipment of Japanese books reportedly sent to US for AI scanning and destruction by Anthropic
- Bulk buyers target niche genres like philosophy, history, and law, hinting at AI training data focus
Japanese used bookstores see 5x sales surge as books are being bought by the ton, one 50-ton order sent to the US for AI scanning and destruction
Tom's Hardware · 24 September 2026
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