Rare Books Shipment Traced to Amazon AI Training Facility in Las Vegas
A significant shipment of rare books has been linked to an Amazon AI training site in Las Vegas, according to an investigation by 404 Media. The bookseller, who received around 1,000 books through Biblio, consented to insert an Apple AirTag into one of the volumes. This tracking device indicated that the book arrived at the VGT3 section of the LAS8 Amazon facility in northeast Las Vegas, identifiable by a dinosaur-with-a-book logo at its entrance. Conversations among Amazon employees suggested that VGT3 is involved in the destructive scanning of large quantities of books, presumably for AI training. This follows previous reports of anonymous clients placing large, price-insensitive orders with book dealers, believed to be AI firms. In June 2025, Anthropic was noted for scanning books for AI training, underscoring the escalating demand for books as training data for AI models and raising concerns regarding copyright and the future of rare books.
Key facts
- 404 Media tracked a shipment of rare books using an Apple AirTag.
- The bookseller received an order of about 1,000 books via Biblio.
- The AirTag was placed inside one of the books.
- The book was delivered to the VGT3 corner of the LAS8 Amazon facility in northeast Las Vegas.
- The facility entrance has a logo of a dinosaur with a book.
- Amazon workers confirmed that VGT3 destructively scans large volumes of books.
- The order was suspected to be for AI training purposes.
- Anthropic was previously reported to be scanning books in June 2025.
Entities
Institutions
- 404 Media
- Amazon
- Biblio
- Anthropic
- Trifinity
- OpenAI
Locations
- Las Vegas
- United States
- Nevada
- California
- Milwaukee
- Wisconsin
- Kenosha
- Colorado Springs
- Grand Junction
- Colorado