NEW YORK - The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft, accusing them of using millions of the newspaper’s articles without permission to help train artificial intelligence technologies.
The Times said it is the first major US media organisation to sue OpenAI and Microsoft, which created ChatGPT and other AI platforms, over copyright issues.
“Defendants seek to free-ride on The Times’ massive investment in its journalism by using it to build substitutive products without permission or payment,” according to the complaint filed on Wednesday in Manhattan federal court in New York.
The Times is not seeking a specific amount of damages, but said it believes OpenAI and Microsoft have caused “billions of dollars” in damages for illegally copying and using its works.
“Besides seeking to protect intellectual property, the lawsuit by The Times casts ChatGPT and other AI systems as potential competitors in the news business,” the newspaper said.
“When chatbots are asked about current events or other newsworthy topics, they can generate answers that rely on past journalism by The Times. The newspaper expresses concern that readers will be satisfied with a response from a chatbot and decline to visit The Times’ website, thus reducing web traffic that can be translated into advertising and subscription revenue.”
The release of AI models trained on The Times’ content has proven “extremely lucrative” for both Microsoft and OpenAI, the lawsuit states.
The publication claims it has attempted to negotiate with both companies for months to “ensure it received fair value for the use of its content”, but failed to reach a solution.
OpenAI and Microsoft did not immediately respond to requests for comment.