Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, Apple and Meta are facing heat from the U.K.’s creative community over the use of copyrighted material in AI development. The Creators’ Rights Alliance (CRA) has fired off a stern warning to these tech behemoths and others in the software development sector, demanding an end to the unauthorized use of creative works for AI training and operation.
Source: Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, Apple, Meta Targeted in U.K. Creators’ AI Content Crackdown
The RIAA and several other organizations condemn AI startup Anthropic for allegedly flaunting copyright law. The criticism appears in an amicus brief in support of a court injunction requested by music publishers, who want the AI company to stop using lyrics without permission. According to the RIAA, Anthropic’s defense relies on the same rhetoric as Napster once did.
Source: RIAA Backs AI Copyright Lawsuit Against Anthropic, Sees Similarities with Napster * TorrentFreak
It was 2022. Layoffs, cost-cutting and what appeared to be an inevitable strike from writers was looming and the industry was in flux. That fall, OpenAI released an early demo of ChatGPT in what became the first momentous moment of the tech entering the public consciousness. Everything changed, starting with “Heart on my Sleeve,” a song that used AI versions of voices from Drake and the Weeknd.
Source: Hollywood’s Divide on Artificial Intelligence Is Only Growing
ProRata.ai has invented tech that it claims enables gen AI platforms to accurately attribute and share revenues on a per-use basis with content owners. ProRata has raised$25 million in a Series A round for its tech, for which it has several pending patents. The company’s early investors include Revolution Ventures, Prime Movers Lab, Mayfield and Technology incubator Idealab Studio.
The Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC) has announced a new collaboration with Beatdapp to “complement and enhance” The MLC’s existing streaming fraud detection capabilities. Beatdapp, a music streaming fraud detection company, announced a USD $17 million funding round in January. Beatdapp has previously said that its technology analyzes massive datasets to identify fraudulent streams, ensuring rightful payouts for artists and rights holders.
Source: The MLC partners with Beatdapp for streaming fraud detection services
In the latest example of a troubling pattern in the tech industry, Nvidia appears to have scraped troves of copyrighted content for AI training. The $2.4 trillion company reportedly asked workers to download videos from YouTube, Netflix and other datasets to develop commercial AI projects. The training was reportedly to develop models for products like its Omniverse 3D world generator, self-driving car systems and “digital human” efforts.
Source: NVIDIA’s AI team reportedly scraped YouTube, Netflix videos without permission
OpenAI appears to be holding back a new “highly accurate” tool capable of detecting content generated by ChatGPT over concerns that it could be tampered with or cause non-English users to avoid generating text with artificial intelligence models. The company mentioned it was working on various methods to detect content generated specifically by its products in a blog post back in May.
Source: OpenAI has a ‘highly accurate’ tool to detect AI content, but no release plans
In June, controversial AI music startups Suno and Udio were sued by the major record companies for allegedly training their systems using the majors’ recordings without permission. Now, in responses filed in US federal courts on Thursday (August 1), the two AI companies have pretty much admitted that they used copyrighted recordings from the recording companies that sued them.
With the window for legislative action quickly closing this calendar year and control of the chamber up for grabs, the powerful New York Democrat is eyeing must-pass bills as a vehicle to get something done on the fast-moving technology he’s labeled a threat to democracy and national security. Schumer hinted to NBC News that two deepfake election bills could be attached to the must-pass funding bill needed to avert a government shutdown at the end of September.
Source: Chuck Schumer eyes opportunities to pass deepfake and AI bills as 2024 elections near
Companies that can’t see how AI is making each decision are at risk financially, reputationally, and legally. The prevailing atmosphere of ignorance — one formed from illogical fear and the other from a lack of information — is untenable. But breaking the AI black box seems undoable. And yet remarkable progress has been made in making AI auditable — an important step in coaxing AI to reveal its secrets.
Source: Faceoff: Auditable AI Versus the AI Blackbox Problem