Meta is facing a lawsuit from US authors who allege the tech giant improperly used their copyrighted works to train its artificial intelligence models. The legal challenge centres on Meta's alleged use of material sourced from LibGen, a shadow library notorious for providing access to copyrighted books and articles. This case marks a significant test of how copyright law applies to the rapidly evolving field of AI, particularly concerning the use of existing works to train AI systems.
The authors claim Meta did not obtain proper licenses or permissions to use their books, thus infringing on their copyright. They argue that the unauthorised use of their works has enabled Meta to develop and improve its AI models, potentially profiting from the infringement. The lawsuit seeks to establish clear legal boundaries for the use of copyrighted material in AI training, which could have far-reaching implications for the tech industry.
If the court rules in favour of the authors, it could force AI developers to seek licenses for any copyrighted material used in training datasets. This could increase the cost and complexity of AI development, potentially slowing down innovation. Conversely, a ruling in favour of Meta could weaken copyright protections and encourage the widespread use of copyrighted material without permission, impacting authors and publishers.