A bill was introduced in the US Congress on Tuesday with the aim of compelling artificial intelligence companies to disclose the copyrighted material they utilize to develop their generative AI models. This legislation is part of a growing movement by lawmakers, news outlets, and artists to determine how AI firms employ creative works such as songs, visual art, books, and movies to train their software, and whether these companies are unlawfully constructing their tools using copyrighted content.
The bill, known as the Generative AI Copyright Disclosure Act, was introduced by Adam Schiff, a Democratic congressman from California. It would mandate that AI companies submit any copyrighted works found in their training datasets to the Register of Copyrights prior to releasing new generative AI systems that produce text, images, music, or video in response to user prompts. Failure to comply with this requirement would result in a financial penalty, compelling companies to file these documents at least 30 days before publicly unveiling their AI tools. These datasets can consist of billions of lines of text and images, or millions of hours of music and movies.
In a statement, Schiff emphasized the disruptive potential of AI, stating that it has the ability to transform our economy, political system, and daily lives. He stressed the need to strike a balance between the immense potential of AI and the crucial requirement for ethical guidelines and protections.
The question of whether major AI companies, valued in the billions, have illegally utilized copyrighted works has become a subject of litigation and government investigation. Schiff’s bill does not prohibit AI from being trained on copyrighted material, but it does place a significant burden on companies to disclose the extensive range of works they use to develop tools like ChatGPT – data that is typically kept private.
Billboard was the first to report on Schiff’s bill, which has garnered support from various entertainment industry organizations and unions, including the Recording Industry Association of America, Professional Photographers of America, Directors Guild of America, and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Tel.
