1. Home
  2. >
  3. AI 🤖
Posted

Zadie Smith, Stephen King and Rachel Cusk’s pirated works used to train AI

Authors such as Zadie Smith, Stephen King, Rachel Cusk, and Elena Ferrante have discovered that their pirated works were used to train artificial intelligence tools by companies including Meta and Bloomberg, leading to concerns about copyright infringement and control of the technology.

theguardian.com
Relevant topic timeline:
The use of copyrighted works to train generative AI models, such as Meta's LLaMA, is raising concerns about copyright infringement and transparency, with potential legal consequences and a looming "day of reckoning" for the datasets used.
Three artists, including concept artist Karla Ortiz, are suing AI art generators Stability AI, Midjourney, and DeviantArt for using their work to train generative AI systems without their consent, in a case that could test the boundaries of copyright law and impact the way AI systems are built. The artists argue that feeding copyrighted works into AI systems constitutes intellectual property theft, while AI companies claim fair use protection. The outcome could determine the legality of training large language models on copyrighted material.
A federal judge has ruled that works created by artificial intelligence (A.I.) are not covered by copyrights, stating that copyright law is designed to incentivize human creativity, not non-human actors. This ruling has implications for the future role of A.I. in the music industry and the monetization of works created by A.I. tools.
Renowned author Stephen King expresses a mix of fascination and resignation towards AI-generated fiction, acknowledging its potential but not considering it on par with human creativity, in response to the growing issue of pirated books being used to train AI models.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is seen as a tool that can inspire and collaborate with human creatives in the movie and TV industry, but concerns remain about copyright and ethical issues, according to Greg Harrison, chief creative officer at MOCEAN. Although AI has potential for visual brainstorming and automation of non-creative tasks, it should be used cautiously and in a way that values human creativity and culture.
“A Recent Entrance to Paradise” is a pixelated artwork created by an artificial intelligence called DABUS in 2012. However, its inventor, Stephen Thaler, has been denied copyright for the work by a judge in the US. This decision has sparked a series of legal battles in different countries, as Thaler believes that DABUS, his AI system, is sentient and should be recognized as an inventor. These lawsuits raise important questions about intellectual property and the rights of AI systems. While Thaler's main supporter argues that machine inventions should be protected to encourage social good, Thaler himself sees these cases as a way to raise awareness about the existence of a new species. The debate revolves around whether AI systems can be considered creators and should be granted copyright and patent rights. Some argue that copyright requires human authorship, while others believe that intellectual property rights should be granted regardless of the involvement of a human inventor or author. The outcome of these legal battles could have significant implications for the future of AI-generated content and the definition of authorship.
Stephen King, a renowned author, defends generative AI by comparing it to the Luddites' resistance to industrial progress, despite the fact that the Luddites were actually protesting against the exploitation of workers through machinery, not progress itself. However, many creatives are concerned about AI's impact on their livelihoods, as it eradicates revenue streams and reduces opportunities for emerging artists, making it crucial to critically examine how the technology is being utilized.
UK publishers have called on the prime minister to protect authors' intellectual property rights in relation to artificial intelligence systems, as OpenAI argues that authors suing them for using their work to train AI systems have misconceived the scope of US copyright law.
AI researcher Stephen Thaler argues that his AI creation, DABUS, should be able to hold copyright for its creations, but legal experts and courts have rejected the idea, stating that copyright requires human authorship.
The United States Copyright Office has launched a study on artificial intelligence (AI) and copyright law, seeking public input on various policy issues and exploring topics such as AI training, copyright liability, and authorship. Other U.S. government agencies, including the SEC, USPTO, and DHS, have also initiated inquiries and public forums on AI, highlighting its impact on innovation, governance, and public policy.
Microsoft will pay legal damages on behalf of customers using its artificial intelligence products if they are sued for copyright infringement for the output generated by such systems, as long as customers use the built-in "guardrails and content filters" to reduce the likelihood of generating infringing content.
Three entrepreneurs used claims of artificial intelligence to defraud clients of millions of dollars for their online retail businesses, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Meta is being sued by authors who claim that their copyrighted works were used without consent to train the company's Llama AI language tool.
Authors, including Michael Chabon, are filing class action lawsuits against Meta and OpenAI, alleging copyright infringement for using their books to train artificial intelligence systems without permission, seeking the destruction of AI systems trained on their works.
A student named Edward Tian created a tool called GPTZero that aims to detect AI-generated text and combat AI plagiarism, sparking a debate about the future of AI-generated content and the need for AI detection tools; however, the accuracy and effectiveness of such tools are still in question.
The generative AI boom has led to a "shadow war for data," as AI companies scrape information from the internet without permission, sparking a backlash among content creators and raising concerns about copyright and licensing in the AI world.
Several fiction writers are suing Open AI, alleging that the company's ChatGPT chatbot is illegally utilizing their copyrighted work to generate copycat texts.