AI Crawlers Feast on Wikimedia Commons Like It's an All-You-Can-Eat Data Buffet

In a shocking turn of events that absolutely no one saw coming, AI crawlers have been caught red-handed gorging themselves on Wikimedia Commons' bandwidth like a group of college students at a free pizza event. The Wikimedia Foundation, in a statement that reeked of both pride and desperation, announced that their bandwidth consumption has skyrocketed by a whopping 50% since January 2024. And guess what? It's not because humans suddenly developed an insatiable thirst for knowledge. No, it's because our metal overlords-in-training decided that Wikimedia Commons is the equivalent of a data smorgasbord.

According to sources (read: a blog post we found while procrastinating), these digital Pac-Mans are gobbling up images, videos, and audio files at an alarming rate. "It's like watching a toddler in a candy store, if the toddler was a highly sophisticated algorithm with no concept of moderation," said a Wikimedia spokesperson, probably.

Here's a quick rundown of why this is happening:

• AI needs data. Lots of it. Like, an unhealthy amount.
• Wikimedia Commons is free, open, and basically has a 'Take All You Want' sign hanging on its virtual door.
• No one told the AI that binge-eating data can lead to digital indigestion.

In related news, the Wikimedia Foundation is considering starting a support group for servers overwhelmed by the AI's unrelenting appetite. "They didn't sign up for this," whispered a lone server in the dark, probably.

So, what's the lesson here? If you're going to offer an all-you-can-eat data buffet, maybe don't be surprised when the AI shows up with a spoon the size of a small country. And to the AI crawlers: maybe try a salad? Just a thought.