The New York Times filed a lawsuit against Microsoft and OpenAI to stop the use of its stories in training chatbots, claiming that the violation of the newspaper’s copyright alone could reach billions in value.
Joining a growing list of individuals and publishers seeking to prevent OpenAI from using copyrighted materials.
In the lawsuit filed today Wednesday in the Federal Manhattan Court, The New York Times pointed out that they are compelled to cooperate and work together as Microsoft and OpenAI are illegally developing their technology, with the aim of producing artificial intelligence products that directly compete with the companies’ products and threaten their existence in the artificial intelligence and information technology services market.
Media institutions face several issues due to the migration of readers to online platforms. While some publications have succeeded in establishing their digital presence, technological advancements pose a threat to many industries of the media.
Leading artificial intelligence companies gather available information online and use it to train chatbots based on AI. This information includes articles previously published by news organizations.
Large language models contribute to training individuals on a variety of other sources written by humans, such as educational materials and digital books. This enhances strong capabilities in language skills and grammatical rules, in addition to the ability to accurately answer questions.
The New York Times mentioned in its lawsuit that the large artificial intelligence model GPT-4 made mistakes in the recommendations it provides to Wirecutter’s product review site, posing a threat to its reputation.
OpenAI and other smart technology companies, including its competitor Anthrobotics, quickly attracted investments worth billions due to the growing public and commercial interest in technology.
At Microsoft, there is a partnership with OpenAI that allows it to benefit from the artificial intelligence technology produced by the company specializing in AI.
Microsoft is a major supporter of OpenAI, having invested billions in the company since their partnership began in 2019.
Microsoft’s massive computers help enhance the AI research for OpenAI, integrating the emerging technology into its products.
The newspaper faces a complaint about the increase in lawsuits filed against OpenAI for copyright infringement.
The newspaper did not mention the specific compensations it aims to obtain, although it stated that the legal action seeks to hold Microsoft and OpenAI accountable for legal and actual damages that could reach billions of dollars due to the unauthorized copying and use of valuable works.
In April, the newspaper reached out to Microsoft and OpenAI to highlight concerns regarding the use of its intellectual property and seek a resolution to this issue.
The newspaper confirmed that during the discussions, it sought to ensure fair value for the use of its content, facilitate the continued healthy media system, and assist in the responsible and beneficial development of artificial intelligence technology for the informed public.
The lawsuit follows the breakdown of talks between the newspaper and the companies, with the lawsuit stating that no resolution was reached in these negotiations.
