Comedian and author Sarah Silverman, along with authors Christopher Golden and Richard Kadrey, have taken legal action against OpenAI and Meta for allegedly infringing on their copyrights. The lawsuits, filed separately in a US District Court, claim that both OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Meta’s LLaMA were trained using unlawfully obtained datasets that included the plaintiffs’ works. These datasets were reportedly sourced from shadow library websites such as Bibliotik, Library Genesis, Z-Library, and others, where the books are available for bulk download through torrent systems.
In their suits, Silverman, Golden, and Kadrey assert that OpenAI and Meta used these unauthorized datasets to train their AI models without obtaining proper permission or licensing from the authors. The plaintiffs argue that this constitutes copyright infringement and are seeking legal remedies for the alleged violation of their intellectual property rights.
The use of AI models like ChatGPT and LLaMA has gained significant popularity in recent years, with these systems being trained to generate human-like text responses. However, concerns have arisen regarding the sources of data used to train these models. In this particular case, the plaintiffs allege that the defendants acquired their works through illegal means, bypassing proper channels such as authorized publishing and distribution platforms.
The alleged acquisition of copyrighted material from shadow library websites raises questions about the responsibility of AI developers and the legality of using such sources to train their models. The lawsuits seek to address these concerns by holding OpenAI and Meta accountable for the alleged copyright infringement and requiring them to comply with intellectual property laws.
The outcome of these legal proceedings could have significant implications for the use of AI models and the acquisition of training datasets. It may lead to discussions surrounding the ethical and legal boundaries of data usage and the potential consequences for copyright holders.
Both OpenAI and Meta, the targets of the lawsuits, have yet to publicly respond to the allegations. As the legal battle unfolds, the outcome will undoubtedly be closely watched by the AI industry, authors, and copyright experts alike. The implications of this case could shape the future practices and regulations surrounding the use of copyrighted material in AI development and training.
