Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a type of computer science. It develops systems that can assist with tasks that may require human-like intelligence, such as problem-solving and understanding language. There are two forms of classical AI:

  • Traditional classical AI uses a set of rules to make decisions without learning from data
  • Modern classical AI uses machine learning and other tools to adapt and learn from data
  • At Pinterest, we’ve always used both forms of classical AI to help people find inspiration to create a life they love. This can show up in a variety of ways, including:

  • Displaying recommended and relevant Pins and ads
  • Improving content moderation
  • Increasing inclusive representation across Pinterest’s feeds, such as diverse body types

  • Where appropriate, we use human reviewers and feedback from the public to refine our AI. We continuously monitor and evaluate our methods to work to ensure the experiences are working as intended.

     

    Machine learning at Pinterest 

    Machine learning involves the development of algorithms and statistical models. It helps computers learn from and make decisions based on existing data. Machine learning systems are built to perform specific tasks, but are not manually programmed to do so. Instead, these systems find patterns, make predictions and can improve performance over time as more data is gathered. 

    Traditional machine learning is primarily about predicting or classifying existing data. For example, to teach a computer to recognize chairs in photos using machine learning, you'd show it a lot of pictures of chairs, and items that aren’t chairs. Then, the computer will learn by itself to tell the difference.

    At Pinterest, we use machine learning in many different areas of the business. For example, we use it to recommend and show the most relevant ideas across home feed, search‌ and related feeds. We also use it to increase inclusive representation across Pinterest’s recommendation feeds, such as diverse body types.
     

    Generative AI at Pinterest

    We’re thoughtfully exploring Generative AI (or Gen AI) technology that drives innovation and creativity. For example, we use Gen AI technology to make ads more engaging and improve campaign performance for advertisers by enabling the creation of backgrounds on product images using Pinterest Canvas, our image generation foundation model. We also use a GenAI chatbot on our Developers' Site to provide you with timely support and guidance.

    We have taken steps to help ensure the responsible use of Gen AI. Our Community Guidelines apply to all forms of content, including content created using Gen AI tools. 

    We’re always making efforts to enhance our content moderation systems. As part of this, we have partnered with the Digital Trust and Safety Partnership (DTSP) and participated in their Gen AI and Automations Working Group.

    Our Community Guidelines apply to all content on Pinterest, regardless of how it has been created. If you find content that should not be on Pinterest, please report it to us.

    The labeling of AI-generated or modified content helps to provide relevant context about the content people see on Pinterest.

    Pinterest may show a label on the close-up of an image Pin when we detect that it was generated or altered with AI. This is according to the IPTC Photo Metadata Standard.

    For ads on Pinterest, we provide a disclosure only in “Why am I seeing this ad?” showing whether the ad contains content that was modified or generated with AI, as detected through metadata.

    We’re working on ways to expand capabilities to better identify Gen AI content in the future through additional technologies.

    Learn more about Gen AI labels and our appeals process in our Help Center article.
     

    Pinterest Canvas Version 5 (“Pinterest Canvas”) is a text-to-image model that powers the Pinterest Performance+ experience for advertisers by enabling them to enhance their ad images. Pinterest Canvas has been trained on approximately 500,000,000 rows of publicly available Pins, Pin descriptions, and Pin metadata that Pinterest users have saved or uploaded to Pinterest, to which the users have granted Pinterest a license, as well the continuous use of synthetic data. The data in the datasets were collected by Pinterest as early as 2009 and were first used in the training of Pinterest Canvas in July 2025. The data collection is ongoing. The data in the datasets may include limited personal information, and material that may be protected by copyright, trademark, and/or patent. The datasets do not include aggregate user information. The datasets were cleansed, processed, and modified for quality purposes and to meet our trust, safety, and other internal standards.

    To see fewer AI Pins in various categories in your feeds check out our help center article.

    Refine your recommendations in your settings to see less AI content in certain categories on your feed.

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