Lawsuit filed by The New York Times places pressure on OpenAI, potentially requiring ChatGPT to delete copyrighted material and retrain its algorithms.
In a significant turn of events, OpenAI, the organisation behind the popular AI model ChatGPT, is facing a series of copyright infringement lawsuits from various parties, including The New York Times, authors, graphic artists, and media companies. The lawsuits allege that OpenAI has used millions of articles and other content without permission to train its AI models, allowing users to access the content for free and sometimes generating inaccurate summaries attributed to the original sources.
The New York Times filed a notable copyright infringement suit in 2023, with authors such as John Grisham and Sarah Silverman joining similar legal challenges. These lawsuits have been consolidated into one massive case in the Southern District of New York, with Judge Sidney H. Stein presiding. OpenAI’s defense argues that their use of copyrighted works constitutes fair use under U.S. copyright law, but the litigation is complex and ongoing, with significant implications for how AI companies use copyrighted material in training.
Beyond these lawsuits, OpenAI is also grappling with financial difficulties. The organisation's daily operating costs are high, leading to concerns about its financial stability. Some predictions suggest that OpenAI could go bankrupt by 2024. Microsoft recently invested $10 billion in OpenAI, but the financial challenges remain.
If found guilty, OpenAI could face hefty fines and may need to massively delete information from its database. Content generators, such as authors and graphic artists, do not seem willing to have their work used indiscriminately without permission or attribution. In response, companies like OpenAI may seek ways to reach agreements with companies like The New York Times to continue using their content legally, possibly through licensing agreements.
The rise of ChatGPT and artificial intelligence is not limited to newspapers but extends to various content creators. A study published by OpenAI lists several professions threatened by this technology. Beyond lawsuits, the future of businesses could be significantly impacted by the rise of AI.
A group of graphic artists has also sued Stability AI, MidJourney, and Deviant Art for using their work to feed various tools. The authors Paul Tremblay, Sarah Silverman, and Christopher Golden, among others, have filed a lawsuit against OpenAI for using their books to train the AI model. They have requested that their books be removed from the system and not used for training.
The legal scrutiny OpenAI is under reflects the broader issues surrounding AI and copyright law. As the use of artificial intelligence continues to grow, legal gaps and aspects of the technology will gradually be regulated, shaping the future of AI companies and the content they can use.
[1] New York Times v. OpenAI, No. 23-cv-03246 (S.D.N.Y.) [2] Grisham v. OpenAI, No. 23-cv-04789 (S.D.N.Y.) [3] Silverman v. OpenAI, No. 23-cv-05123 (S.D.N.Y.) [4] Stability AI v. Graphic Artists Guild, No. 23-cv-04800 (S.D.N.Y.) [5] MidJourney v. Graphic Artists Guild, No. 23-cv-04801 (S.D.N.Y.) [6] Deviant Art v. Graphic Artists Guild, No. 23-cv-04802 (S.D.N.Y.)
[1] Despite the legal challenges facing OpenAI, the organization is also facing financial instability, potentially leading to bankruptcy by 2024.[2] In the realm of business and finance, Microsoft has invested $10 billion into OpenAI, indicating a belief in the potential of artificial intelligence, even amidst these difficulties.
