Federal Judge Rules AI Training on Books May Qualify as Fair Use

A federal judge has ruled in favor of Anthropic, stating that using books to train AI systems can be considered fair use, even without permission from the authors. The ruling, issued by Judge William Alsup in the Northern District of California, is the first major legal decision to address whether using copyrighted material to train AI falls under the doctrine of fair use. 

Although the decision doesn’t guarantee the same outcome in other cases, it does set a potential standard for how courts might treat similar issues moving forward. The issue has been a growing concern for creators across industries as AI tools gain popularity. 

Since 2023, a wave of copyright lawsuits has targeted AI companies, filed by authors, record labels, and media organizations. Many creators have also signed public letters pushing lawmakers and tech companies to enforce stronger rules around how copyrighted content can be used in AI training. In parallel, some companies have opted to enter licensing agreements with AI developers to regulate the usage of their content. 

The recent case was brought by authors Kirk Wallace Johnson, Andrea Bartz, and Charles Graeber. They accused Anthropic of using their books without authorization, claiming the company copied millions of books, including pirated versions, to help train its language models, which generate human-like text. 

While Alsup acknowledged that the authors’ books are protected and contain creative elements, he concluded that the use of these materials was largely lawful under the fair use doctrine. 

According to U.S. copyright law, whether something qualifies as fair use depends on four key factors: the purpose of use, the nature of the copyrighted work, how much is used, and the impact on the market for the original. Judge Alsup stated that AI training is a transformative process, meaning the technology creates something new rather than simply copying the original work. He noted that the training process doesn’t compete with or replace the authors’ books in the market. 

However, the judge also noted that while copying legally purchased books to train AI is acceptable, using pirated copies is not. Anthropic may still be held accountable for using illegally obtained materials, even if it later bought the same books through proper channels. 

Anthropic responded to the ruling by highlighting the court’s acknowledgment of the transformative nature of their work. It noted that the goal wasn’t to copy or replace original books, but to develop something entirely new. 

For companies like D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS) that are focused on other verticals within the tech industry, the lawsuit against Anthropic can offer some insights into how more conflicts between traditional technologies and cutting-edge technologies could erupt. 

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/QBTS 

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