How to handle the ‘wild west’ of generative AI: part 2

18-08-2023

Matt Savare and Bryan Sterba

How to handle the ‘wild west’ of generative AI: part 2

Tada Images / Shutterstock.com

The use of generative AI tools has led to questions over the copyrightability of certain outputs as well as publicity rights issues, say Bryan Sterba, Matt Savare and Chloe Rippe of Lowenstein Sandler.

Courts have yet to articulate how copyright authorship standards should adapt to partially generated artificial intelligence (GAI) works. Yet, that has not stopped technologists from testing the legal boundaries.

Litigation is pending between physicist Stephen Thaler and the US Copyright Register over whether he can or cannot claim copyright to a GAI-generated work.

In his registration application, Thaler stated that the machine was the author, but purported to transfer ownership to himself under the work made for hire doctrine.


Lowenstein Sandler, generative AI, copyright authorship, artificial intelligence, Midjourney, infringement, derivative works

WIPR