Are AI models plagiarism or synthesis? What does the New York Court think about artificial Intelligence and copyright?

Are AI models plagiarism or synthesis? What does the New York Court think about artificial Intelligence and copyright?

Generative artificial Intelligence (AI) has burst onto the creative landscape with the promise of revolutionizing the way we produce art, music, text and other forms of expression. However, this emerging technology has also sparked intense debate about copyright and intellectual property. 

At the heart of the controversy is the question of whether generative AI creates original works or simply reproduces existing content.

Training generative AI models

Generative AI models are based on deep learning, a technique that allows machines to learn patterns and relationships in large data sets. To train a generative AI model, it is fed with a vast amount of information, such as images, text or music. From this data, the model learns to generate new content that shares characteristics with the training material, but is not an exact copy of it.

The process of training generative AI models raises fundamental questions about originality and authorship. Is the AI model the author of the generated work or is it the result of the combination of the training data? What is the role of the artists and creators whose work is used to train the AI? These questions do not yet have definitive answers, and are not yet answered in a definitive way.

Lawsuit against OpenAI

One of the most prominent cases in the debate over copyright and generative AI is the lawsuit filed against OpenAI, the company that created the GPT-4 language model. Several authors and artists have sued OpenAI for copyright infringement, alleging that their works were used without permission to train the GPT-4 model.

The plaintiffs argue that generative AI does not create original works, but merely reproduces snippets of copyrighted content. They argue that the use of their works to train the AI constitutes an infringement of their intellectual property rights.

Position of the New York Court

The New York Court has partially dismissed the lawsuit against OpenAI, arguing that the plaintiffs have failed to convincingly demonstrate that the generative AI reproduces copyrighted works in a substantially similar manner. The court has acknowledged that generative AI can create new and original works, although it has left open the possibility that new claims may be brought in the future if there are clearer instances of plagiarism.

The New York Court’s decision is an important milestone in the debate over copyright and generative AI. While it does not set a definitive precedent, it sets an important precedent by recognizing the ability of AI to create original works.

The debate over copyright and generative AI is far from settled. As this technology continues to evolve, new questions and legal challenges will arise. It is critical that policymakers, creators and society as a whole reflect on the role of AI in the creation and dissemination of content, and that clear legal frameworks are put in place that protect copyright without stifling innovation and creativity.

Generative AI has the potential to transform the way we interact with culture and art. However, a balance needs to be struck between encouraging innovation and protecting the rights of creators. Only then will we be able to take full advantage of the potential of generative AI without compromising the diversity and richness of our cultural heritage.