Technology · Malaysia Bureau
US Justice Department backs OpenAI in New York Times copyright dispute
The United States Department of Justice has sided with OpenAI in a high-profile copyright lawsuit brought by The New York Times, arguing that public benefits from the technology outweigh potential competitive harms. The Times has accused the AI company of illegally using millions of its articles to train its large language models.
LSN Malaysia ·
In a significant development in the ongoing legal battle between the media giant and the artificial intelligence company, the US Justice Department submitted arguments supporting OpenAI's position in the copyright infringement case. The New York Times filed suit alleging that OpenAI improperly used millions of articles from its archives without permission or compensation to train its AI systems.
The Justice Department's intervention centres on the argument that the broader societal benefits derived from OpenAI's technology justify the use of copyrighted material in the development of large language models. According to the government's position, the public interest in advancing AI innovation takes precedence over the competitive disadvantages claimed by The Times.
The case has emerged as a critical test of copyright law in the age of artificial intelligence, with significant implications for how AI companies can legally access and utilise published content for training purposes. The outcome could influence not only the future operations of OpenAI but also set legal precedents affecting other technology companies developing generative AI systems.
The New York Times maintains that the unlicensed use of its journalism constitutes copyright infringement and seeks damages for what it characterises as misappropriation of its intellectual property. The dispute highlights growing tensions between the media industry and AI developers over content usage rights and fair compensation in an increasingly digital landscape.