AI & Copyright: Redefining Legal Boundaries In The Age Of Automation
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 12
- 2 min read
Aman Sen, BBA LLB (Hons.), KIIT School of Law, KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
ABSTRACT
"On the one hand, authors would go broke if their copyrights weren’t respected and, on the other, innovation would be impossible if vast amounts of copyrighted work were not allowed to be used to train new AI systems1."
– Shashi Tharoor.
This quote captures the delicate balance between safeguarding intellectual property and encouraging technological progress in the age of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI). The rapid advancement of AI platforms, such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini, has transformed the way we generate and consume content. However, the widespread use of AI raises profound ethical and legal questions, particularly in relation to copyright, privacy, and the exploitation of data.
A striking example of the risks associated with AI's use in legal contexts occurred when Donald Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, was found guilty of submitting fabricated case citations – referred to by the court as “hallucinations.2” Despite using the open-search tool Google Bard to source the citations, Cohen’s defence was one of ignorance, shedding light on the potential dangers of over-reliance on AI-generated content. US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, acknowledging AI's efficiency, called for caution and humility in its application, especially in legal processes. This episode highlights the complex intersection of AI and the law, where the traditional legal system may be vulnerable to the generation of false or misleading information by AI systems3.
The incorporation of copyrighted material, such as music, books, and other creative works, into large language models (LLMs) raises significant concerns regarding the protection of creators' rights. As AI technologies evolve and generate personalized content, the question of how to prevent exploitation of copyrighted works remains pressing. This paper examines the implications of GenAI on copyright law, privacy, and ethical considerations, with particular focus on how new frameworks, such as India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, may help address these emerging challenges.
