Main topic: Copyright protection for works created by artificial intelligence (AI)
Key points:
1. A federal judge upheld a finding from the U.S. Copyright Office that AI-generated art is not eligible for copyright protection.
2. The ruling emphasized that human authorship is a fundamental requirement for copyright protection.
3. The judge stated that copyright law protects only works of human creation and is not designed to extend to non-human actors like AI.
Main topic: Copyright concerns and potential lawsuits surrounding generative AI tools.
Key points:
1. The New York Times may sue OpenAI for allegedly using its copyrighted content without permission or compensation.
2. Getty Images previously sued Stability AI for using its photos without a license to train its AI system.
3. OpenAI has begun acknowledging copyright issues and signed an agreement with the Associated Press to license its news archive.
### Summary
The rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is making it difficult for the public to differentiate between real and fake content, raising concerns about deceptive fake political content in the upcoming 2024 presidential race. However, the Content Authenticity Initiative is working on a digital standard to restore trust in online content.
### Facts
- Generative AI is capable of producing hyper-realistic fake content, including text, images, audio, and video.
- Tools using AI have been used to create deceptive political content, such as images of President Joe Biden in a Republican Party ad and a fabricated voice of former President Donald Trump endorsing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' White House bid.
- The Content Authenticity Initiative, a coalition of companies, is developing a digital standard to restore trust in online content.
- Truepic, a company involved in the initiative, uses camera technology to add verified content provenance information to images, helping to verify their authenticity.
- The initiative aims to display "content credentials" that provide information about the history of a piece of content, including how it was captured and edited.
- The hope is for widespread adoption of the standard by creators to differentiate authentic content from manipulated content.
- Adobe is having conversations with social media platforms to implement the new content credentials, but no platforms have joined the initiative yet.
- Experts are concerned that generative AI could further erode trust in information ecosystems and potentially impact democratic processes, highlighting the importance of industry-wide change.
- Regulators and lawmakers are engaging in conversations and discussions about addressing the challenges posed by AI-generated fake content.
### Summary
A debate has arisen about whether AI-generated content should be labeled as such, but Google does not require AI labeling as it values quality content regardless of its origin. Human editors and a human touch are still necessary to ensure high-quality and trustworthy content.
### Facts
- Over 85% of marketers use AI in their content production workflow.
- AI labeling involves indicating that a piece of content was generated using artificial intelligence.
- Google places a higher emphasis on content quality rather than its origin.
- The authority of the website and author is important to Google.
- Google can detect AI-generated content but focuses on content quality and user intent.
- Human editors are needed to verify facts and ensure high-quality content.
- Google prioritizes natural language, which requires a human touch.
- As AI becomes more prevalent, policies and frameworks may evolve.
AI labeling, or disclosing that content was generated using artificial intelligence, is not deemed necessary by Google for ranking purposes; the search engine values quality content, user experience, and authority of the website and author more than the origin of the content. However, human editors are still crucial for verifying facts and adding a human touch to AI-generated content to ensure its quality, and as AI becomes more widespread, policies and frameworks around its use may evolve.
The use of copyrighted material to train generative AI tools is leading to a clash between content creators and AI companies, with lawsuits being filed over alleged copyright infringement and violations of fair use. The outcome of these legal battles could have significant implications for innovation and society as a whole.
The proliferation of deepfake videos and audio, fueled by the AI arms race, is impacting businesses by increasing the risk of fraud, cyberattacks, and reputational damage, according to a report by KPMG. Scammers are using deepfakes to deceive people, manipulate company representatives, and swindle money from firms, highlighting the need for vigilance and cybersecurity measures in the face of this threat.
AI Algorithms Battle Russian Disinformation Campaigns on Social Media
A mysterious individual known as Nea Paw has developed an AI-powered project called CounterCloud to combat mass-produced AI disinformation. In response to tweets from Russian media outlets and the Chinese embassy that criticized the US, CounterCloud produced tweets, articles, and even journalists and news sites that were entirely generated by AI algorithms. Paw believes that the project highlights the danger of easily accessible generative AI tools being used for state-backed propaganda. While some argue that educating users about manipulative AI-generated content or equipping browsers with AI-detection tools could mitigate the issue, Paw believes that these solutions are not effective or elegant. Disinformation researchers have long warned about the potential of AI language models being used for personalized propaganda campaigns and influencing social media users. Evidence of AI-powered disinformation campaigns has already emerged, with academic researchers uncovering a botnet powered by AI language model ChatGPT. Legitimate political campaigns, such as the Republican National Committee, have also utilized AI-generated content, including fake images. AI-generated text can still be fairly generic, but with human finesse, it becomes highly effective and difficult to detect using automated filters. OpenAI has expressed concern about its technology being utilized to create tailored automated disinformation at a large scale, and while it has updated its policies to restrict political usage, it remains a challenge to block the generation of such material effectively. As AI tools become increasingly accessible, society must become aware of their presence in politics and protect against their misuse.
Google has announced a new tool, called SynthID, which embeds a digital "watermark" into AI-generated images, making it harder to spread fake images and disinformation.
The United States Copyright Office has issued a notice of inquiry seeking public comment on copyright and artificial intelligence (AI), specifically on issues related to the content AI produces and how it should be treated when it imitates or mimics human artists.
AI writing detectors cannot reliably distinguish between AI-generated and human-generated content, as acknowledged by OpenAI in a recent FAQ, leading to false positives when used for punishment in education.
Adobe, IBM, Nvidia, and five other firms have signed President Joe Biden's voluntary commitments regarding artificial intelligence, which include steps like watermarking AI-generated content, in an effort to prevent the misuse of AI's power.
US Senator Pete Ricketts is introducing a bill that would require watermarks on AI-generated content in order to provide transparency to consumers and differentiate between real and AI-generated information.
Deepfakes, which are fake videos or images created by AI, pose a real risk to markets, as they can manipulate financial markets and target businesses with scams; however, the most significant negative impact lies in the creation of deepfake pornography, particularly non-consensual explicit content, which causes emotional and physical harm to victims and raises concerns about privacy, consent, and exploitation.
Adversaries and criminal groups are exploiting artificial intelligence (AI) technology to carry out malicious activities, according to FBI Director Christopher Wray, who warned that while AI can automate tasks for law-abiding citizens, it also enables the creation of deepfakes and malicious code, posing a threat to US citizens. The FBI is working to identify and track those misusing AI, but is cautious about using it themselves. Other US security agencies, however, are already utilizing AI to combat various threats, while concerns about China's use of AI for misinformation and propaganda are growing.
Google's search engines are failing to block fake, AI-generated imagery from its top search results, raising concerns about misinformation and the search giant's ability to handle phony AI material.
Microsoft's Bing search engine is receiving several AI improvements, including the integration of OpenAI's DALLE-E 3 model, the ability to provide more personalized answers based on prior chats, and the addition of invisible digital watermarks to AI-generated images for content authenticity. These enhancements aim to enhance user experiences and ensure responsible image generation.
As AI technology progresses, creators are concerned about the potential misuse and exploitation of their work, leading to a loss of trust and a polluted digital public space filled with untrustworthy content.
Criminals are increasingly using artificial intelligence, including deepfakes and voice cloning, to carry out scams and deceive people online, posing a significant threat to online security.
Deepfake images and videos created by AI are becoming increasingly prevalent, posing significant threats to society, democracy, and scientific research as they can spread misinformation and be used for malicious purposes; researchers are developing tools to detect and tag synthetic content, but education, regulation, and responsible behavior by technology companies are also needed to address this growing issue.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to facilitate deceptive practices such as deepfake videos and misleading ads, posing a threat to American democracy, according to experts who testified before the U.S. Senate Rules Committee.
Current watermarking methods for AI images are unreliable and easily evaded, according to a study by University of Maryland computer science professor Soheil Feizi and his coauthors.
AI-altered images of celebrities are being used to promote products without their consent, raising concerns about the misuse of artificial intelligence and the need for regulations to protect individuals from unauthorized AI-generated content.
Microsoft has integrated OpenAI's DALL-E 3 model into its Bing Image Creator and Chat services, adding an invisible watermark to AI-generated images, as experts warn of the risks of generative AI tools being used for disinformation; however, some researchers question the effectiveness of watermarking in combating deepfakes and misinformation.
AI-generated stickers are causing controversy as users create obscene and offensive images, Microsoft Bing's image generation feature leads to pictures of celebrities and video game characters committing the 9/11 attacks, a person is injured by a Cruise robotaxi, and a new report reveals the weaponization of AI by autocratic governments. On another note, there is a growing concern among artists about their survival in a market where AI replaces them, and an interview highlights how AI is aiding government censorship and fueling disinformation campaigns.
Deepfake videos featuring celebrities like Gayle King, Tom Hanks, and Elon Musk have prompted concerns about the misuse of AI technology, leading to calls for legislation and ethical considerations in their creation and dissemination. Celebrities have denounced these AI-generated videos as inauthentic and misleading, emphasizing the need for legal protection and labeling of such content.
Google is introducing a new policy to defend users of its generative AI systems on Google Cloud and Workspace platforms against intellectual property violation claims, covering both the use of copyrighted works for training AI and the output generated by the systems.
Deepfake AI technology is posing a new threat in the Israel-Gaza conflict, as it allows for the creation of manipulated videos that can spread misinformation and alter public perception. This has prompted media outlets like CBS to develop capabilities to handle deepfakes, but many still underestimate the extent of the threat. Israeli startup Clarity, which focuses on AI Collective Intelligence Engine, is working to tackle the deepfake challenge and protect against the potential manipulation of public opinion.
Generative AI systems, trained on copyrighted material scraped from the internet, are facing lawsuits from artists and writers concerned about copyright infringement and privacy violations. The lack of transparency regarding data sources also raises concerns about data bias in AI models. Protecting data from AI is challenging, with limited tools available, and removing copyrighted or sensitive information from AI models would require costly retraining. Companies currently have little incentive to address these issues due to the absence of AI policies or legal rulings.
The publishing industry is grappling with concerns about the impact of AI on copyright, as well as the quality and ownership of AI-generated content, although some authors and industry players believe that AI writing still has a long way to go before it can fully replace human authors.
Writers and artists are filing lawsuits over the use of copyrighted work in training large AI models, raising concerns about data sources and privacy, and the potential for bias in the generated content.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being used to create fake audio and video content for political ads, raising concerns about the potential for misinformation and manipulation in elections. While some states have enacted laws against deepfake content, federal regulations are limited, and there are debates about the balance between regulation and free speech rights. Experts advise viewers to be skeptical of AI-generated content and look for inconsistencies in audio and visual cues to identify fakes. Larger ad firms are generally cautious about engaging in such practices, but anonymous individuals can easily create and disseminate deceptive content.
Deepfake visuals created by artificial intelligence (AI) are expected to complicate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as Hamas and other factions have been known to manipulate images and generate fake news to control the narrative in the Gaza Strip. While AI-generated deepfakes can be difficult to detect, there are still tell-tale signs that set them apart from real images.
Artificial intelligence and deepfakes are posing a significant challenge in the fight against misinformation during times of war, as demonstrated by the Russo-Ukrainian War, where AI-generated videos created confusion and distrust among the public and news media, even if they were eventually debunked. However, there is a need for deepfake literacy in the media and the general public to better discern real from fake content, as public trust in all media from conflicts may be eroded.
The Data Provenance Initiative has found that approximately 70% of fine-tuning data sets used by AI developers have improper licensing or are mislabeled, leading to a lack of clarity on copyright restrictions and usage requirements. This has raised concerns about the fair use of text taken from the internet, particularly for training large AI systems. The initiative aims to increase transparency and provide visibility into the ecosystem of data used in generative AI models.
Google has pledged to protect users of its generative AI products from copyright violations, but it has faced criticism for excluding its Bard search tool from this initiative, raising questions about accountability and the protection of creative rights in the field of AI.
The Israel-Hamas conflict is being exacerbated by artificial intelligence (AI), which is generating a flood of misinformation and propaganda on social media, making it difficult for users to discern what is real and what is fake. AI-generated images and videos are being used to spread agitative propaganda, deceive the public, and target specific groups. The rise of unregulated AI tools is an "experiment on ourselves," according to experts, and there is a lack of effective tools to quickly identify and combat AI-generated content. Social media platforms are struggling to keep up with the problem, leading to the widespread dissemination of false information.