Meta Platforms Inc. has announced an indefinite suspension of all work with Mercor, an AI data contracting startup valued at $10 billion, following a security breach that may have compromised proprietary training data from major AI laboratories. The breach, confirmed by Mercor in an email to staff on March 31, has raised alarms across the AI research community, prompting companies like OpenAI and Anthropic to assess the potential impact on their sensitive datasets. While OpenAI is continuing its projects with Mercor, it is actively investigating how its proprietary training data may have been affected. The breach has garnered particular attention due to the high value and sensitivity of the data involved. Contractors working on Meta-related projects have been informed that they cannot log billable hours during this pause, leaving them effectively out of work until the project resumes. Mercor is reportedly seeking alternative projects for affected contractors as it navigates the fallout from this incident.