Last month, the New York Times sued OpenAI, alleging the artificial intelligence company used copyrighted NYT articles for the purpose of training its bots.
In the lawsuit, the Times clearly states it never gave permission for OpenAI to use its content in this manner. As a result of these allegations, the New York Times contends that OpenAI owes billions in damages and cannot continue “free-riding” via the illegal use of copyrighted material.
Weeks after the lawsuit, OpenAI is now claiming without access to copyrighted content, it won’t be able to create or train generative bots.
Not a good sign for generative AI
Copyright protections of various materials emerge for the express purposes of declaring ownership and allowing the creator to earn income from authorized outside users of their material. Copyrighted content is not allowed to be used without the express permission of its owner.
Unfortunately for OpenAI, the company relies upon broad data found online, much of which remains copyrighted. In order for OpenAI to legally train its bots with this content, it will first need to get permission from the original creators.
