Owner of AI based data analysis tool ChatGPT, OpenAI has received a claim for copyright infringement from George RR Martin and John Grisham, as well as other famous authors.
Martin, famous for his Game of Thrones series, has joined forces with other authors and filed a claim against OpenAI on grounds that OpenAI are using the Authors’ works to make ChatGPT smarter without their permission.
The case has been filed in the US by the Authors Guild, which represents the authors. The claim includes an accusation that OpenAI has engaged in “systematic theft on a mass scale”.
The claim continues that as ChatGPT can create accurate summaries of the books through its platform, it must have been fed the copyright protected works without authorisation.
A literary, dramatic, artistic or musical work is automatically protected by copyright when created, if original. Copyright protection allows the owner of the work to take action against anyone who has copied a substantial part of the work. There needs to be some level of duplication of the work for the claim to succeed, as copyright protects the expression of an idea, rather than the idea itself.
A spokesperson for OpenAI said: “We’re having productive conversations with many creators around the world, including the Authors Guild, and have been working co-operatively to understand and discuss their concerns about AI.
“We’re optimistic we will continue to find mutually beneficial ways to work together.”
As the claim has just been filed, it has a long way to go. However, if it does go all the way, it could be revolutionary in the world of developing technology we now all live in.
