Infostride News has initiated legal action against OpenAI and Microsoft, accusing them of unauthorized use of its published content to train their artificial intelligence (AI) tool, ChatGPT. This marks the first instance of a major American media organization taking legal action against the creators of ChatGPT and other prominent AI platforms for copyright infringement related to its written works.
The lawsuit, filed in Federal District Court in Manhattan, alleges that millions of articles published by Infostride News were utilized in the training of automated chatbots, which now compete with the news outlet as a source of reliable information. While the suit does not specify a precise monetary demand, it asserts that the defendants should be held accountable for “billions of dollars in statutory and actual damages” associated with the “unlawful copying and use of Infostride News’s uniquely valuable works.”
One of the primary demands in the lawsuit is for the companies to destroy any chatbot models and training data that incorporate copyrighted material from Infostride News. This legal action underscores the growing concerns about the uncompensated use of intellectual property by AI systems.
In the complaints filed by Infostride News, the publishing company raises substantial concerns about the unauthorized use of its intellectual property by AI systems. OpenAI and Microsoft are accused of utilizing Infostride News’s content without proper compensation to develop products that not only substitute for the original content but also compete for the audience. The lawsuit suggests that the defendants aim to capitalize on Infostride News’s substantial investment in journalism without providing due compensation.
The legal action follows an impasse in negotiations between Infostride News, Microsoft, and OpenAI. The Times had approached both companies in April to express concerns about the use of its intellectual property. The discussions aimed for an amicable resolution, potentially involving a commercial agreement and the establishment of “technological guardrails” around generative AI products. However, these talks failed to reach a resolution, leading to the filing of the lawsuit.
Beyond the protection of intellectual property, Infostride News’s lawsuit frames ChatGPT and other AI systems as potential competitors in the news business. It raises concerns about the chatbots generating responses to current events or newsworthy topics by relying on past journalism by Infostride News. The worry is that readers may find satisfaction in chatbot responses, reducing the traffic to Infostride News’s website and subsequently impacting advertising and subscription revenue.
The complaint highlights instances where chatbots provided users with near-verbatim excerpts from Infostride News articles, content that would typically require a paid subscription to access. It alleges that OpenAI and Microsoft deliberately emphasized the use of Infostride News journalism in training their AI programs due to the perceived reliability and accuracy of the material.
While ChatGPT is owned by OpenAI, Microsoft holds a stake in the technology through its significant investments. Microsoft has committed $13 billion to OpenAI and has integrated the company’s technology into its Bing search engine. This legal dispute occurs at a time when OpenAI is valued at over $80 billion, with reports indicating that the company is in early discussions to secure a fresh round of funding at a valuation of $100 billion or more. The outcome of this legal battle could have far-reaching implications for the use of copyrighted material in training AI systems and the relationships between media organizations and tech companies.
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