Judge Dismisses Case Against OpenAI by Raw Story and AlterNet, Citing Lack of Evidence
A federal judge in New York has dismissed a copyright lawsuit brought against OpenAI by news outlets Raw Story and AlterNet. The lawsuit accused OpenAI of using thousands of the outlets’ articles to train its AI models, including ChatGPT, without permission or compensation. U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon ruled that the news outlets had failed to demonstrate sufficient harm to justify the lawsuit but left the door open for an amended complaint.
Background of the Case
The lawsuit, filed in February, claimed that OpenAI unlawfully trained its large language models on Raw Story and AlterNet’s articles. The complaint argued that OpenAI’s ChatGPT model could reproduce protected text from these articles when prompted, potentially violating copyright law. Raw Story acquired AlterNet in 2018, and their legal team asserted they would address the court’s concerns in a revised complaint.
“We’re certain we can address the issues identified by the court through an amended complaint,” said Raw Story attorney Matt Topic of Loevy + Loevy.
An OpenAI spokesperson responded, stating, “We build our AI models using publicly available data, in a manner protected by fair use and related principles, and supported by long-standing and widely accepted legal precedents.”
Judge’s Ruling and Reasoning
Judge McMahon dismissed the complaint but gave Raw Story and AlterNet the option to refile. McMahon cited doubts about the outlets’ ability to prove sufficient injury, explaining, “The alleged injury…is not the exclusion of [copyright management information] but the use of Plaintiffs’ articles to develop ChatGPT without compensation.” She questioned whether this constituted a legal harm that would support their claims, adding, “Whether there is another statute or legal theory that does elevate this type of harm remains to be seen.”
Copyright Disputes Around AI Training
This lawsuit is one among many filed by creators, authors, artists, and media organizations against AI developers, including OpenAI. The plaintiffs argue that their content is being used to train AI models without consent or payment. The New York Times also filed a copyright lawsuit against OpenAI in December, marking the first high-profile case from a major media outlet. Raw Story and AlterNet’s case is notable for alleging that OpenAI unlawfully removed copyright management information (CMI) from their articles, although it did not claim copyright infringement.
Legal Implications
Judge McMahon’s ruling underscores the evolving legal landscape surrounding AI and copyright. While dismissing the current complaint, her decision leaves open the possibility of an amended complaint or a refiled case. Legal experts are closely watching these lawsuits as they could set precedents for how AI companies access and use digital content for model training.
