Largest Class Action Lawsuit could upend the nascent AI Industry

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A significant class action lawsuit against Anthropic has emerged, potentially involving up to 7 million plaintiffs and posing a serious threat to the AI industry. If successful, the lawsuit could impose damages that may financially cripple both minor and major AI companies. Industry groups are urging an appeals court to block the class certification, arguing that the initial ruling lacked a thorough analysis and could lead to catastrophic financial liabilities for Anthropic. The lawsuit centers on allegations of illegal use of copyrighted material in AI training, raising questions about the balance between copyright law and the rapid advancement of technology. Discussions also touch on the potential for government intervention in the AI sector for national security reasons and the need for copyright laws to adapt to technological changes. The situation highlights the precarious position of AI companies amidst evolving legal frameworks and competitive pressures from international AI providers.
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Arc Technica published an article on the largest class action lawsuit with potentially 7 million plaintiffs against Anthropic. Should they win, the damages could have a chilling effect on the whole AI industry, killing off minor players and hobbling major ones with insurmountable debt.

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy...argest-copyright-class-action-ever-certified/

AI industry groups are urging an appeals court to block what they say is the largest copyright class action ever certified. They've warned that a single lawsuit raised by three authors over Anthropic's AI training now threatens to "financially ruin" the entire AI industry if up to 7 million claimants end up joining the litigation and forcing a settlement.

Last week, Anthropic petitioned to appeal the class certification, urging the court to weigh questions that the district court judge, William Alsup, seemingly did not. Alsup allegedly failed to conduct a "rigorous analysis" of the potential class and instead based his judgment on his "50 years" of experience, Anthropic said.

If the appeals court denies the petition, Anthropic argued, the emerging company may be doomed. As Anthropic argued, it now "faces hundreds of billions of dollars in potential damages liability at trial in four months" based on a class certification rushed at "warp speed" that involves "up to seven million potential claimants, whose works span a century of publishing history," each possibly triggering a $150,000 fine.

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jedishrfu said:
Arc Technica published an article on the largest class action lawsuit with potentially 7 million plaintiffs against Anthropic. Should they win, the damages could have a chilling effect on the whole AI industry, killing off minor players and hobbling major ones with insurmountable debt.
If the AI companies are found to be illegaly using copyright material, why shouldn't they pay? You appear to make an a priori assumption that the rights of AI companies override all else?
 
I agree with you but I’m also thinking how govts will do things for the “greater good.” Since AI has become a new battleground between nations, the US govt could theoretically step in and overrule everything for natl security reasons.

There are some notable examples where through eminent domain a govt takes your land citing for the greater good the needs of the people override your ownership.

Civil forfeiture where the govt takes your money in a traffic stop claiming you’re carrying it to do some criminal act in a “proof me wrong” to get it back scheme.

Some patent idea you’ve filed gets taken away and your research notebooks become classified material for Natl Security reasons as happened to the first inventor of the laser.

Nicola Tesla lost US patent rights to Marconi. However years later, there was a reversal of rights when the felt hobbled by royalty payments to Marconi.

There are several other examples involving Native American culture where land deemed useful or mineral rich caused the Govt to step in and seize it displacing the Native Americans to some inhospitable and desolate piece of land.
 
AI copying art and music is national security?
 
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Hmmm
some internet cases.
Napster
Internet Archive
BitTorrent files - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_issues_with_BitTorrent

Can AI enterprises claim 'fair use'? and still attempt to profit from the copyright material?

While I find copyright restrictions and practices excessive in certain cases, whole disregard also seems excessive.
Copyright law ( and patent law ) may have to be, or should be re-written to reflect the fast pace of technological progress.
 
jedishrfu said:
Arc Technica published an article on the largest class action lawsuit with potentially 7 million plaintiffs against Anthropic. Should they win, the damages could have a chilling effect on the whole AI industry, killing off minor players and hobbling major ones with insurmountable debt.

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy...argest-copyright-class-action-ever-certified/
Luckily, the Chinese and French have AI as well, so people can switch to Chinese or French AI providers if American AI ends. I run Mistral AI locally, which is French.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gez754mn6o
 

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