Pioneering Lawsuit: Clash of Titans as New York Times Challenges OpenAI’s AI Technology

The lawsuit between the New York Times and OpenAI and Microsoft over copyright infringement highlights the conflict between traditional news organizations and emerging technologies. While copyright law was created long before the existence of large language models like ChatGPT, it will need to adapt to these new circumstances. The central legal issue in the case will be the doctrine of fair use, which determines when the use of copyrighted text is acceptable. The Times argues that ChatGPT’s responses, which resemble their articles, could harm their business model. On the other hand, Microsoft and OpenAI claim that their models don’t copy but rather learn and make new predictions. However, they will struggle to refute the argument that their products rely on the newsgathering done by organizations like the Times. To produce accurate and reliable information, someone must first gather and verify the facts, which requires substantial resources. This brings into play the public interest in supporting the free press, as without reliable news organizations, the information provided by these technologies would be compromised. Balancing these interests within copyright law will be a challenge for the courts, and if necessary, Congress may need to intervene. Failure to preserve the news infrastructure could have detrimental effects on democracy.