OpenAI made headlines this week by asserting to a UK parliamentary committee that developing cutting-edge AI systems like ChatGPT without utilizing vast amounts of copyrighted data would be "impossible." The company argued that the broad training required for advanced AI tools would make adhering to copyright law unfeasible.

In its written testimony, OpenAI explained that due to expansive copyright laws and the prevalence of protected online content, almost all forms of human expression would be inaccessible for training data, including news articles, forum comments, and digital images.

OpenAI stated that attempts to create effective AI while avoiding copyright infringement would be futile, as limiting training data to public domain materials from over a century ago would not meet the needs of modern citizens.

While acknowledging the potential for partnerships and compensation schemes with publishers to support creators, OpenAI showed no intention of significantly restricting its collection of online data, including paywalled journalism and literature.

This stance has resulted in OpenAI facing multiple lawsuits, including from media outlets like The New York Times alleging copyright violations.

Despite legal challenges, OpenAI seems unwilling to drastically alter its data collection and training methods, as self-imposed copyright limitations would be "impossible" to adhere to. Instead, the company hopes to rely on broad interpretations of fair use exceptions to legally utilize vast amounts of copyrighted data.

As AI technology continues to advance, legal experts anticipate intense courtroom battles over infringement by systems designed to absorb large volumes of protected text, media, and other creative content.

For now, OpenAI is advocating for expansive data usage to drive ongoing AI development, despite opposition from copyright advocates.