OpenAI accuses New York Times of paying someone to hack ChatGPT

OpenAI has accused the New York Times of paying someone to hack its product, ChatGPT, in a filing submitted to the Manhattan federal court. OpenAI is seeking the partial dismissal of several parts of the Times’ December copyright lawsuit against it. The filing states that the Times’ allegations, which include more than 100 examples of ChatGPT generating word-for-word paragraphs of Times content, do not meet the newspaper’s rigorous journalistic standards. OpenAI also claims that the Times exploited a bug using deceptive prompts to generate these results, which normal people do not use the product in such a way. The dispute raises fundamental questions about fair use in AI models trained on copyrighted content.

OpenAI accuses New York Times of paying someone to hack ChatGPT

OpenAI, in a filing in Manhattan federal court, has accused the New York Times of paying someone to hack OpenAI’s products. The accusation comes as OpenAI requests the partial dismissal of several parts of the copyright lawsuit filed against it by the Times. OpenAI also argues that ChatGPT, its AI language model, is not a substitute for a subscription to the Times. According to OpenAI, people do not use ChatGPT or any other OpenAI product to access Times articles at will. OpenAI aims to dispute the Times’ allegations, claiming that they do not meet the Times’ high journalistic standards.

OpenAI’s request for partial dismissal

OpenAI is seeking the partial dismissal of various claims made by the New York Times in its copyright lawsuit. OpenAI argues that the allegations made by the Times, including over 100 examples of alleged word-for-word content generation by ChatGPT, do not meet the rigorous journalistic standards set by the Times. OpenAI claims that the Times took tens of thousands of attempts to generate the results and only did so by exploiting a bug and using deceptive prompts in violation of OpenAI’s terms of use. OpenAI also asserts that people do not use its products in the same manner as alleged by the Times.

OpenAI disputes the Times’ allegations

OpenAI disputes the allegations made by the Times and argues that the claims do not meet the Times’ rigorous journalistic standards. OpenAI claims that the Times had to make tens of thousands of attempts to generate the supposedly infringing content, which OpenAI contends were achieved by exploiting a bug and using deceptive prompts. OpenAI states that normal people do not use its products in this manner, contrary to the allegations made by the Times.

OpenAI seeks dismissal of four claims

OpenAI seeks the dismissal of four claims made by the Times in its copyright lawsuit. OpenAI intends to have the claims of direct copyright infringement, contributory infringement, copyright management information removal, and unfair competition by misappropriation dismissed. OpenAI wants to focus the litigation on the core issue of whether using copyrighted content to train AI models falls under fair use.

OpenAI’s intention to focus on core issues

OpenAI aims to concentrate the litigation on the central question of fair use concerning the use of copyrighted content to train AI models. OpenAI believes that the use of copyrighted content for training AI models falls within the fair use doctrine. By focusing on this core issue, OpenAI seeks to address the fundamental legal questions surrounding its use of copyrighted material.

The Times’ response

The Times’ lead counsel asserts that OpenAI’s filing does not dispute the unauthorized use of copyrighted work. The Times argues that OpenAI’s usage of copyrighted material is not fair use. The Times claims that OpenAI copied millions of its works without permission, and the scale of copying goes beyond the examples mentioned in the complaint. The Times also notes that OpenAI’s licensing deals with other news publishers further confirm that unauthorized use of copyrighted work is not fair.

AI and copyright challenges

The Times filed a copyright lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging widespread infringement in both the input and output of OpenAI’s AI models. The core issue of the lawsuit is whether using copyrighted content to train AI models without permission and compensation constitutes fair use. OpenAI firmly believes that it is fair use and predicts that the lawsuits will ultimately favor the defendants.

OpenAI’s statement on fair use

OpenAI maintains that it would be impossible to train AI models without using copyrighted materials. OpenAI argues that language and facts cannot be monopolized, and no entity, including the New York Times, has the right to claim exclusive control over them. OpenAI asserts that its use of copyrighted content falls within the fair use doctrine and is essential for the advancement of AI technology.

The debate surrounding AI training and copyright

The question of whether AI companies can train their models on copyrighted content without permission and compensation has yet to be settled. The U.S. Copyright Office has not ruled on whether AI training qualifies as fair use. Media companies argue that they should be entitled to value generated from their works if AI companies utilize them for training. There is a difference in opinions between AI companies and media companies regarding the use of copyrighted content for AI training.

Conclusion

The copyright lawsuit between OpenAI and the New York Times raises crucial questions about fair use and the training of AI models. OpenAI contends that its use of copyrighted materials is fair and necessary for advancing AI technology. The Times argues that OpenAI’s unauthorized use of copyrighted work is not fair and seeks compensation for the alleged infringement. The outcome of these lawsuits will have significant implications for the future relationship between AI companies and media companies regarding the use of copyrighted content.