DOJ Sides with AI Firms on Copyright Use for Large Language Models
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a Statement of Interest (SOI) in favor of OpenAI and Microsoft, arguing that training their large language models using copyrighted works should be considered fair use.
In a lawsuit brought by The New York Times against the two AI firms, the DOJ's SOI claims that this practice is new and transformative, making it eligible for fair use protections.
However, the DOJ also notes that the outputs generated by these models are not necessarily covered by the same legal argument.
The filing has taken some key agencies by surprise, with publishers criticizing the claims made in the SOI. Vivek Shah, CEO of Ziff Davis, pointed out that the government's argument is muddled and doesn't take a position on whether a licensing regime is feasible.