U.S. Government Backs OpenAI in Copyright Dispute

The Government of the United States filed a brief in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday supporting OpenAI in its ongoing copyright dispute with the New York Times and other publishers. This intervention marks the first time the U.S. government has entered the wave of lawsuits regarding AI training. The government argues that training large language models on copyrighted texts is extraordinarily transformative and generally constitutes fair use.

U.S. officials stated that maintaining AI dominance is critical for scientific advancement, economic prosperity, and national security. They warned that restrictive interpretations of copyright law could place the United States at a disadvantage compared to foreign adversaries. In a separate action, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick urged G20 officials in North Carolina to embrace fair use for AI training while exploring methods to protect artists.

The legal battle stems from a 2023 lawsuit filed by the New York Times, which accuses OpenAI and its financial backer, Microsoft, of using millions of articles without permission to train its models.