The New York Times has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), alleging copyright infringement related to the unauthorized use of millions of NYT articles to train AI models, including ChatGPT.
The lawsuit contends that the companies' artificial intelligence (AI) technology, developed using the Times' content, now competes directly with the newspaper's services.
The NYT is claiming that OpenAI and Microsoft placed specific emphasis on its content during large-scale copying, diminishing the newspaper's ability to offer its services and leveraging its journalism investment without permission or compensation.
Despite months of negotiation with OpenAI and Microsoft for fair compensation and agreement terms, the NYT said that no resolution has been reached. The legal complaint seeks unspecified monetary damages, a permanent injunction to halt further infringement, and the destruction of AI models or training sets that incorporate the newspaper's journalism.
The NYT joins major media outlets like the BBC, CNN, and Reuters in taking a stand against the unauthorized use of their content in AI development, highlighting concerns about the potential impact on journalism.
Other outlets, however, have adopted a different approach: Axel Springer, which owns Politico and Business Insider, is working with OpenAI to allow ChatGPT to pull information directly from both sources, and the Associated Press is allowing OpenAI to train its models on its news stories.