Salesforce has moved to block other software firms from searching or storing Slack messages.
The Salesforce-owned workplace messaging app recently made changes to its terms and services, according to The Information, which first reported on the announcement.
A spokesperson for Salesforce explained: “As AI raises critical considerations around how customer data is handled, we’re committed to delivering AI and data services in a way that’s thoughtful and transparent.”
Salesforce also explained it was “reinforcing safeguards around how data accessed via Slack APIs can be stored, used, and shared.”
In a practical sense, this means applications that utilize Slack cannot index, copy, or store data it accesses through the API on a long-term basis.
Speaking to The Information, Glean – a workplace AI provider – said the changes are “hampering your ability to use your data with your chosen enterprise AI platform,” citing an email intended for Glean customers.
The news comes at a time when AI firms are under particular scrutiny over the handling of personal and customer data, something particularly prevalent in using this data to train AI models.
Is This Really a Big Deal? Industry Reactions Say Yes!
After the Information went live with the news, it ripped through social media and became the dominant conversation for the day.
Some people proved more outspoken than others, such as Tim Glomb, Co-Founder of RavenEQ.ai, who exclaimed in a LinkedIn post:
[The] new terms of service for Slack APIs reveal their current intent: not to be your partner but rather to lock you up.
It’s undeniable that this policy decision has proven divisive.
For those against it, the key message is that tech providers must stay open to democratizing data.
In this utopian world where data is accessible, usable, and interoperable across multiple systems, the results can be transformative.
Then, consider using agentic AI at this point. It can truly be used as a force multiplier, connecting third-party software and triggering automations across them.
This is why many in the sector are scratching their heads at this decision. Many are left pondering, isn’t Salesforce going against the very thing they set out to pioneer?
Glomb added: “Salesforce’s recent move to restrict API access under the guise of ‘security’ and ‘responsible AI ‘ is actually a playbook designed to lock customers in, block out competition, and punish businesses for trying to innovate with their own data.
It’s one thing to build a secure platform. It’s another to put up walled gardens so tall that your customers need a legal team just to walk through the front door.
Where Salesforce goes with its Slack changes and wider policy changes remains to be seen, but one thing remains true: Salesforce will continue to disrupt.
As it does so, Slack will morph further into an operating system for Agentforce-centric businesses, and something that can differentiate Salesforce.
That seems to be the objective, especially given its recent move to embed Slack directly into CRM records.
