Canadian Media Organizations Sue OpenAI For Copyright Infringement

A coalition of major Canadian news organizations, including CBC/Radio-Canada, The Globe and Mail, and Torstar, has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging unauthorized use of their journalism to train its AI models, particularly ChatGPT. The lawsuit, initiated in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, accuses OpenAI of copyright infringement and seeks damages, with claims potentially amounting to billions, as plaintiffs demand C$20,000 per article used. The news outlets argue that OpenAI's actions undermine the value of journalism and the public interest, while OpenAI defends its practices by stating that its models are trained on publicly available data under fair use principles. This case is part of a wider trend of legal challenges against OpenAI by various media organizations globally, echoing similar actions taken by the New York Times. The outcome of this lawsuit could set significant precedents for copyright law in the AI sector, particularly regarding the balance between innovation and intellectual property rights.