Don’t Miss Your Chance to Give the Government Your Views on Copyright and AI Works

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Large Language Models (LLMs) are the hottest things in the digital world. There are lots of cutting-edge possibilities created by the great leap between early LLMs and ChatGPT-4. AI is not just for leading tech companies, though.

Companies in every industry and of every size are likely to be using AI soon. These tools are great for creating promotional materials and basic internal documentation. That recent college graduate social media manager is almost certainly going to use AI and LLMs for Facebook, Instagram and TikTok posts.

That means every business needs to think through the protection issues associated with copyrights in AI-generated works. Today, when your employed social media manager posts on your company’s Facebook page, copyright protection automatically applies. That is not necessarily true for LLM-generated content. Copyright protection requires a human author.

The other big issue is that many AI tools are “trained” by viewing copyrighted materials. Does that mean the AI tools’ output is a derivative work? If so, is your company committing copyright infringement by posting content or using the output of an AI tool?

How the Copyright Office comes to view the use of AI and LLMs will impact every business.

On March 16, the Copyright Office launched a new initiative to examine the copyright law and policy issues raised by AI, including the scope of copyright in works generated using AI tools and the use of copyrighted materials in AI training.

To address the copyrightability and registration issues raised by these works, the Copyright Office issued new registration guidance. The guidance makes clear that applicants have a duty to disclose the inclusion of AI-generated content in works submitted for registration. It outlines how to do so, how to update pending applications, and how to correct the public record on copyright claims that have already been registered without the required disclosure.

The Copyright Office has also launched a new webpage for announcements, events and resources related to AI and copyright. It is a great resource to find current information.

The Copyright Office is also hosting public listening sessions on these issues. These listening sessions will provide an opportunity for participants to discuss their goals and concerns related to the use and impact of generative AI.

Interested parties can register for the public listening sessions:

• • Literary Works on Wednesday, April 19, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. eastern time
  • Visual Works on Tuesday, May 2, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. eastern time
  • Audiovisual Works on Wednesday, May 17, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. eastern time
  • Music and Sound Recordings on Wednesday, May 31, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. eastern time

If you are using AI or LLMs, getting your perspective into this conversation is important. If you have questions about copyright issues regarding AI or LLMs, contact Drew Patty, Andrew Coffman or the rest of the Phelps Intellectual Property team.