OpenAI urges U.S. to allow AI models to train on copyrighted material

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https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/openai-urges-us-allow-ai-models-train-copyrighted-material-rcna196313

OpenAI is asking the U.S. government to make it easier for AI companies to learn from copyrighted material, citing a need to “strengthen America’s lead” globally in advancing the technology…

In its proposal, OpenAI urged the federal government to enact a series of “freedom-focused” policy ideas, including an approach that would no longer compel American AI developers to “comply with overly burdensome state laws.”..

OpenAI must be denied free rein over copyright-protected works

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SueW, NaNoNyMouse

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OpenAI, how hypocritical it is.

I am sure OpenAI will want to be compensated if someone were to make use of their AI technologies. (And it already complained about someone (Deepseek) stealing their tech without compensation, I believe.) But it doesn’t want to compensate others to make use of their data to “train” their AI models.

https://appleinsider.com/articles/25/03/13/openai-wants-the-us-government-to-legalize-theft-to-reach-the-ai-promised-land

I like this quote from the above article :

Deepseek is an existential crisis for OpenAI’s bottom line, not Democracy.

I agree this is all about OpenAI’s bottom line rather than anything else, and not about other AI competitors and definitely not about China. OpenAI is burning through cash to train their models and offer AI services, and it is losing money fast.

Speaking about bottom line, OpenAI just received US$6.6 billion in a funding round in October last year (Apple was set to invest but declined to do so eventually, perhaps Apple saw something that raised the alarm bell?) :

https://techcrunch.com/2024/10/02/openai-raises-6-6b-and-is-now-valued-at-157b/
(Valued at $157 billion? Apparently I am really dumb, but I certainly don’t see how this thing can be valued that much.)

Apparently that was not enough as OpenAI said back in December 2024 that :
https://openai.com/index/why-our-structure-must-evolve-to-advance-our-mission/

The hundreds⁠ of billions of dollars that major companies are now investing into AI development show what it will really take for OpenAI to continue pursuing the mission. We once again need to raise more capital than we’d imagined.

And in February there was talk that Softbank (Japan) was set to invest $40 billion in OpenAI. I wonder how much more money will OpenAI need?

I expect those who provided the funding to OpenAI (including Microsoft which provided a so-called US$13 billion “investment”) will expect to be paid back in full in the future with whatever interest necessary, or else. OpenAI’s current business model is losing money by the truckload. Apparently it lost US$5 billion last year, according to the New York Times. How will OpenAI pay back all these “funding” or “investment”?

Maybe that’s why OpenAI now wants the US government to protect it from copyright holders so that it can be above the law and use their data without compensation?

Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.

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SueW, Alex5723, WSbobby-p

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