The Daily
The Writers’ Revolt Against A.I. Companies
Tue Jul 18 2023Description
New artificial intelligence platforms like ChatGPT are using the work of authors, poets, comedians, and actors without their consent. Concerns are rising about the potential dangers of AI capabilities and whether creators have any control over their content. Legal issues surrounding copyright protection have emerged, with lawsuits filed against AI companies for illegally scraping copyrighted material. Fan fiction writers are leading a rebellion against AI platforms, feeling wounded by the scraping of their work. Struggles and uncertainties persist in protecting creative work, with both copyright-protected creators and amateur writers facing challenges. In other news, Russia's decision to end the Black Sea Grain Initiative threatens global food prices and supply, while smoke from Canadian wildfires affects millions of Americans.
Insights
AI platforms using creators' work without consent
New AI platforms like ChatGPT are scraping the work of authors, poets, comedians, and actors without their permission, raising concerns about control over content and potential dangers.
Legal issues and copyright protection
Lawsuits have been filed against AI companies for illegally scraping copyrighted material. Legal experts believe there is some protection for creative professionals, but retrieving data from AI systems is difficult once it's in.
Fan fiction writers leading a rebellion
Fan fiction writers lack copyright protection but are rebelling against AI platforms that scrape their work. They have established rules and protest methods to prevent mimicry.
Struggles in protecting creative work
Both copyright-protected creators and amateur writers are struggling to protect their work from AI platforms. Uncertainties remain about regulation, public response, and the impact on privacy.
Russia's decision threatens global food prices
Russia's decision to end the Black Sea Grain Initiative is causing concern for global food prices and supply. The United Nations warns of unnecessary suffering worldwide.
Chapters
- Concerns about AI and Creative Professionals
- Legal Issues and Copyright Protection
- Fan Fiction Writers' Rebellion Against AI
- Struggles and Uncertainties in Protecting Creative Work
- Other News
Concerns about AI and Creative Professionals
00:02 - 07:02
- New artificial intelligence platforms like ChatGPT are using the work of authors, poets, comedians, and actors without their consent.
- A clash is emerging between those excited about AI capabilities and those concerned about its potential dangers.
- People are questioning whether they want their content fed into AI machines and if they have any control over it.
- Two groups are asking these questions: those whose livelihood depends on their creative work and hobbyists who share their art online.
- Creative professionals like actors and writers feel threatened by AI's ability to mimic their style and potentially replace them.
- Sarah Silverman, a comedian, writer, and actor, believes that ChatGPT has learned her comedic style without her permission.
- AI machines constantly scrape the internet for data without seeking permission or understanding the implications for creators' livelihoods.
- Artists can check repositories to see if their work has been scraped by AI platforms like ChatGPT.
- Testing out AI platforms personally reveals how closely they can mimic one's voice or writing style.
Legal Issues and Copyright Protection
06:40 - 13:02
- Even after knowing about AI for a year, the speaker was creeped out at how close it got to replicating their voice.
- The AI-generated text used a phrase that the speaker frequently used in their articles without them realizing it.
- AI can imitate what has already been done, but it cannot provide fresh and new reporting like humans can.
- Several lawsuits have been filed against AI companies by individuals and publishers for illegally scraping and using copyrighted material.
- Legal experts believe there is some copyright protection for creative professionals, but retrieving the data from AI systems is impossible once it's in.
- The New York Times is exploring options to charge AI companies for using their content.
Fan Fiction Writers' Rebellion Against AI
12:57 - 19:52
- Reddit is considering licensing their data, but it will take time for an agreement to be reached.
- Copyright protected creators are not mounting a forceful pushback against AI platforms due to the slow legal process.
- Hobbyists and enthusiasts, such as fan fiction writers, lack copyright protection but are leading a creative rebellion against AI.
- Fan fiction writers discovered that their work was being scraped by AI platforms when the machines showed specific knowledge of their characters and storylines.
- Fan fiction writers feel wounded that their labor of love is being scraped by machines and see it as an attack on human creativity.
- They have established internal rules in their communities and are getting creative in rebelling against AI systems.
- One protest method is feeding nonsense into AI systems to confuse them and prevent mimicry.
- Some fan fiction writers have made their content private or removed it from the web entirely in response to machine scraping.
Struggles and Uncertainties in Protecting Creative Work
19:28 - 26:23
- Some fan fiction writers are resorting to using gibberish or making their content private to prevent AI platforms from scraping their work.
- These tactics, however, are counterproductive for the fan fiction community as they limit access and readability of the content.
- Both copyright-protected creators and amateur writers seem to be struggling against AI platforms in protecting their work.
- The US government could potentially regulate AI platforms by requiring payment for uploading copyrighted works, but it is slow to act and hesitant due to competition with China in the AI arms race.
- It remains uncertain whether public sympathy towards copyright complaints will lead to a larger pushback against AI platforms or if people's excitement about these technologies will override concerns.
- The potential creepiness factor arises when AI systems can replicate our voices and personalities based on our data, leading to a sense of being replicated by machines.
- We are still in the early stages of this technology, and its usefulness may outweigh privacy concerns as seen with Facebook and Google.
- Questions remain about how companies use data, license it, and determine the value of AI systems. Whether robots are good or bad depends on how corporations utilize them.
Other News
25:58 - 28:42
- Russia will end the Black Sea Grain Initiative, threatening global food prices and supply.
- Russia claims the agreement favored Ukraine over its own people.
- The United Nations says Russia's decision will cause unnecessary suffering worldwide.
- Smoke from Canadian wildfires is affecting 72 million Americans across 29 states.