Here’s a twist in the never-ending saga of AI versus copyright law: a bunch of sharp legal minds—copyright law professors, no less—have thrown their hat into the ring. They’ve filed an amicus brief backing authors in their lawsuit against Meta. And their main gripe? Meta’s trying to play the fair use card for training its Llama AI on copyrighted e-books without asking. The professors aren’t buying it, calling Meta’s move “a bold ask for more legal leeway than any human author’s ever gotten.”
The brief, which reads like a masterclass in legal argument, makes the case that using copyrighted stuff to teach AI doesn’t cut it as transformative. It’s like saying teaching a kid to write with your book is the same as feeding it to an AI—spoiler, it’s not. Plus, let’s not forget Meta’s in it for the money, which kinda puts a dent in their fair use defense.
Dubbed Kadrey v. Meta, this isn’t just any lawsuit. With big names like Richard Kadrey, Sarah Silverman, and Ta-Nehisi Coates leading the charge, it’s got star power. But it’s not just about the celebs; it’s a showdown that could redefine how AI and copyright law get along. The authors claim Meta didn’t just use their books without permission—they also played hide-and-seek with the copyright info.
Meta’s comeback? They’re saying the authors don’t even have the right to sue. But Judge Vince Chhabria wasn’t having it, letting the case move forward because, well, copyright infringement sounds like a pretty solid injury to him. And that bit about Meta possibly scrubbing copyright details? Yeah, that didn’t help their case.
As this legal drama unfolds, it’s not just Meta sweating. The outcome could send ripples through tech and creative worlds alike, especially with other cases like The New York Times’ tiff with OpenAI waiting in the wings. Talk about setting the stage for some serious precedent.
