Artificial Intelligence
Lawmakers Drill US Copyright Head Over Protections for AI Art
- Copyright Office a ‘natural laboratory’ for studying copyrightability
- Fair use defense for AI training still unclear, office director says
US Copyright Office Director Shira Perlmutter clarified to a House committee Wednesday that the human-created elements of an AI-assisted artwork can receive copyright protection, but the line is often blurry.
That question has vexed creators as the office and courts have begun to consider the copyright implications of powerful generative AI art programs.
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet, posed to Perlmutter a series of examples where artists use an AI program in their work. He asked whether an author who writes a novel but then uses an AI program to change 40% of the words to improve the book can receive a copyright registration.
“You’ve got an original copyrightable work by a human, which is the book, and then a derivative work created by a machine which would probably not be copyrightable as a separate work,” Perlmutter said.
Read more: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/lawmakers-drill-us-copyright-head-over-protections-for-ai-art
The creative industries are fighting back against UK government proposals to let artificial intelligence companies use copyright-protected work without permission.
The latest protest is a silent album co-written by more than 1,000 musicians, including Kate Bush, and follows a statement signed by 48,000 creatives including Abba’s Björn Ulvaeus in which they warned of a “major, unjust threat” to artists’ livelihoods.
Artificial Intelligence
Kate Bush, New Order, & Damon Albarn Among 1,000 UK Artists Protesting Government’s AI Stance With A Silent Album
Last week, the UK government proposed a new policy that would allow tech companies to use copyrighted works to train their artificial intelligence algorithms. Under the proposal, artists and companies could opt out of having their material used for AI, but it would otherwise give the companies unfettered access to people’s creative work without having to license anything. The proposal has incited widespread anger in the UK’s arts communities, and now a team of 1,000 British musicians has released a silent protest album called Is This What We Want?
Writers, publishers, musicians, photographers, movie producers and newspapers have rejected the Labour government’s plan to create a copyright exemption to help artificial intelligence companies train their algorithms.
In a joint statement, bodies representing thousands of creatives dismissed the proposal made by ministers on Tuesday that would allow companies such as Open AI, Google and Meta to train their AI systems on published works unless their owners actively opt out.
