As artists endeavor to safeguard their creations from being utilized in training AI models, Jack Dorsey has proposed the complete abolition of intellectual property (IP) laws. Elon Musk supports this notion.
On a recent Friday, Jack Dorsey, cofounder of X (formerly Twitter) and Block (formerly Square), posted on X advocating for the deletion of all IP laws. Elon Musk, the current leader of X, responded with agreement. Collectively, their brief statements, despite consisting of only six words, could significantly impact the future of intellectual property in the era of artificial intelligence.
Earlier that day, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, participated in an interview with Chris Anderson during TED’s conference. Anderson presented Altman with an AI-generated cartoon strip of Charlie Brown, suggesting it resembled IP theft, and queried whether OpenAI had any licensing agreement with the Peanuts estate. Altman did not respond directly but expressed OpenAI’s intention to develop tools that enhance human creativity, stating the need to devise a new economic model for creative output.
The statements made by Dorsey, Musk, and Altman reflect a shared belief among tech entrepreneurs that copyright laws require evolution to adapt to the capabilities of generative AI. OpenAI and Google have actively lobbied the U.S. government to allow AI models to use protected works like movies, articles, and music, advocating for such utilization to be considered as falling under the fair use doctrine. OpenAI emphasizes that this issue pertains to national security concerns.
However, many artists and advocacy groups perceive the call to “delete all IP laws” as an attack on their rights, asserting that AI companies are profiting from and competing with their works, in violation of current copyright laws. Over 50,000 artists, including Thom Yorke, James Patterson, and Julianne Moore, signed an open letter denouncing the unlicensed use of creative works for training generative AI, labeling it a significant threat to their livelihoods.
A letter signed by Hollywood figures such as Ron Howard, Paul McCartney, and Cynthia Erivo was also submitted to the White House, opposing Google and OpenAI’s efforts to deregulate the AI industry. Atreya Mathur, director of Legal Research at the Center for Art Law, contended that intellectual property law, grounded in the U.S. Constitution to promote creativity, ensures that contributors to cultural and scientific advancements receive recognition, protection, and compensation; eliminating these laws would undermine that purpose and devalue creators’ labor and rights.
Ed Newton-Rex, CEO of Fairly Trained, which supports ethically sourced training data, remarked on X that tech executives are waging a war against creators who resist their work being used for profit without consent. Some users on X critiqued Dorsey for his position, noting that his success as a billionaire was achieved in part through IP protections.
As prominent figures in technology seek legal approval for AI’s ability to learn freely, they are likely to encounter significant resistance from the entertainment industry.
