Another copyright infringement action has been filed against OpenAI and Microsoft. Nonfiction authors Nicholas Basbanes and Nicholas Gage filed a lawsuit against the two corporations, saying that they copied their copyrighted writings to help construct its artificial intelligence (AI) system.
The action, filed in Manhattan federal court on Friday, Jan. 5, comes a week after The New York Times filed a similar copyright infringement complaint against Microsoft and OpenAI, alleging the corporations used the newspaper’s material to train AI chatbots.
The latest legal action comes on the heels of OpenAI’s admission that copyright holders, including the plaintiffs, should be compensated for the use of their work. The New York Times lawsuit is pursuing “billions of dollars” in damages.
According to the filing, the Basbanes and Gage lawsuit demands up to $150,000 in damages for each copyright infringement.
Similarities to The New York Times Case: This lawsuit echoes the concerns raised by The New York Times, which claimed that OpenAI had used millions of its articles to train its AI models without proper compensation or attribution. Both lawsuits raise questions about how much-copyrighted material can be used in AI training data without infringing on intellectual property rights.
The Fair Use Dilemma: Fair use is a legal doctrine that allows for the limited use of copyrighted material without permission for purposes such as criticism, commentary, or news reporting. However, determining what constitutes fair use in the context of AI training is a complex and evolving issue.
OpenAI’s Response: OpenAI has not yet publicly commented on the latest lawsuit. In response to The New York Times lawsuit, the company acknowledged the importance of respecting intellectual property rights but argued that its use of the newspaper’s articles constituted fair use.
The Wider Implications: These lawsuits come at a critical time for the AI industry, as concerns about the ethical implications of AI development continue to grow. The issue of data acquisition and use is particularly crucial, as AI models rely on massive amounts of data to learn and operate.
Conclusion
The outcome of these lawsuits could have significant implications for the future of AI development. If copyright holders are successful in asserting their rights, it could make it more difficult for companies like OpenAI to train their AI models. This could potentially lead to the development of less powerful or more limited AI systems.
