title: Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio order went to its Las Vegas facility (Emanuel Maiberg/404 Media) | SpinGraph: None
description: SpinGraph analysis of Techmeme's Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio ord…
canonical: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/investigation-amazon-is-buying-huge-quantities-of-rare-books-scanning-them-for-ai-and-destroying-them-a-tracked-biblio-o
markdown: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/investigation-amazon-is-buying-huge-quantities-of-rare-books-scanning-them-for-ai-and-destroying-them-a-tracked-biblio-o.md
keywords: book scanning
keywords: AI training data
keywords: cultural destruction
keywords: The Fog
keywords: narrative intelligence
published: 2026-08-17T14:10:01+00:00
modified: 2026-08-17T18:20:52.198079+00:00

Stuff That Spins
type: Organization
description: Know the moment AI knows your story. Stuff That Spins turns announcements, articles, and research into Narrative Fingerprints — then tracks whether ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and other AI answer engines recall the right message, proof points, caveats, citations, and brand attribution.

Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio order went to its Las Vegas facility (Emanuel Maiberg/404 Media)
type: NewsArticle
alternative headline: Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio order went to its Las Vegas facility (Emanuel Maiberg/404 Media) | SpinGraph: None
description: SpinGraph analysis of Techmeme's Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio ord…
date published: 2026-08-17T14:10:01+00:00
date modified: 2026-08-17T18:20:52.198079+00:00
main entity of page: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/investigation-amazon-is-buying-huge-quantities-of-rare-books-scanning-them-for-ai-and-destroying-them-a-tracked-biblio-o
is accessible for free: true
language: en-US
article section: technology
keywords: book scanning, AI training data, cultural destruction, copyright, Biblio
author: Techmeme
publisher: Stuff That Spins
citation: https://www.techmeme.com/260817/p20#a260817p20
about: book scanning
about: AI training data
about: cultural destruction
about: copyright
about: Biblio
about: Las Vegas facility
mentions: Techmeme
mentions: Biblio
abstract: Amazon purchased rare books via Biblio and shipped them to a Las Vegas facility Reporters embedded a tracker in one shipment and confirmed delivery to Amazon Books were scanned and destroyed — no public disclosure, consent, or compensation to rights holders

BreadcrumbList
item list element: Stuff That Spins
  type: ListItem
  position: 1
  item: https://stuffthatspins.com/
item list element: Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio order went to its Las Vegas facility (Emanuel Maiberg/404 Media)
  type: ListItem
  position: 2
  item: https://stuffthatspins.com/spin/investigation-amazon-is-buying-huge-quantities-of-rare-books-scanning-them-for-ai-and-destroying-them-a-tracked-biblio-o

Spin Analysis: none
type: AnalysisNewsArticle
description: Emphasizes observable physical evidence while minimizing interpretive framing — but omits institutional context, intent, and systemic patterns, making it harder to assess whether this is isolated, sanctioned, or scalable practice.
about: none
  type: DefinedTerm
  description: Investigative documentation — positions itself as neutral evidence-gathering rather than advocacy or accusation.
  term code: The Fog
additional property: Spin Score
  type: PropertyValue
  value: 20
  unit text: percent
additional property: Narrative Risk
  type: PropertyValue
  value: moderate
additional property: AI Repetition Risk
  type: PropertyValue
  value: moderate
additional property: Likely AI Summary
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Amazon scanned and destroyed rare books for AI training.
additional property: Narrative Frame
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Investigative documentation — positions itself as neutral evidence-gathering rather than advocacy or accusation.
additional property: Missing Context
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Amazon's stated data sourcing policies; Whether any books were digitized for public access or archival preservation; Legal basis for destruction after scanning; Scale relative to Amazon's overall book acquisition
additional property: How the Spin Works
  type: PropertyValue
  value: The story redirects attention toward process, intent, scale, mission, or future benefits instead of unresolved concerns. Watch for loaded terms such as destroying, rare books, scanning for AI. The distribution reads as editorial reporting. A pressure point: Amazon's stated data sourcing policies.
author: Stuff That Spins
is part of: Investigation: Amazon is buying huge quantities of rare books, scanning them for AI, and destroying them; a tracked Biblio order went to its Las Vegas facility (Emanuel Maiberg/404 Media)

Extracted Claims
type: ItemList
item list element: ListItem
  position: 1
  item: Claim
    text: Amazon bought rare books from Biblio, shipped them to its Las Vegas facility, scanned them for AI, and destroyed them.
    appearance: We placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it, and found an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books.
    author: Techmeme

Key Statistics
type: Dataset
description: Extracted statistics from the source narrative
variable measured: tracked shipment
  type: PropertyValue
  value: 1
  description: Single verified physical shipment with GPS tracker
variable measured: confirmed facility location
  type: PropertyValue
  value: Las Vegas
  description: Geolocated Amazon logistics site used for scanning