The New York Times sues OpenAI and Microsoft for improper use of its articles in AI training like ChatGPT.
The issue of data introduced into large language models to train them is becoming increasingly acute, with multiple entities explaining that their intellectual property has not been respected. And if we have seen numerous lawsuits being filed for this reason in 2023 on the United States side, it seems that serious things are really starting with the procedure launched by the New York Times this Wednesday, December 27.
ChatGPT, unfair competition
OpenAI and Microsoft will have to explain themselves in court. The New York Times accuses them of copyright infringement, “ by copying and using millions » articles to train ChatGPT and Copilot.
The problem according to the American newspaper of reference would be significant. Indeed, in addition to having used all this data without authorization, their ingestion by the AIs in question would now allow them to “ generate results that recite the Times’ content verbatim, summarize it closely, and mimic its expressive style ”, according to the words of the complaint.
As a result, the AIs of the two companies have in fact become particularly unfair competitors. The problem is all the more serious as a ChatGPT can access information normally hidden behind a paywall and return it free of charge to a user, which represents an obvious loss of income for the newspaper.
Several billion dollars claimed
As a result, the New York Times stepped up to the plate. The complaint filed in Manhattan shows that the newspaper had sought to obtain as early as April ” an amicable resolution » with Microsoft and OpenAI, without result. Since then, the American media has decided to go to the country’s courts, and is now demanding several billion dollars in damages. He also demands that the use of his content by Microsoft and OpenAI be prohibited and that his information be deleted from these companies’ databases.
The conflict between the two partners and the New York Times was brought to the public eye this summer when we learned that the OpenAI crawler had been blocked by the newspaper. The conflict which is beginning should be all the less a good source of publicity for Microsoft and OpenAI since, at the same time, Apple is negotiating to obtain the right to use newspaper data for cold hard cash.
Source : The Verge, BBC
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