Microsoft exec called AI scraping 'the largest theft of labor in human history'

What happened

Unredacted filings in The New York Times' lawsuit show Microsoft's Brent Hecht called AI scraping 'the largest theft of labor in human history,' while OpenAI's Nick Turley warned of an 'existential threat' to publishers.

Why it matters

The admissions suggest AI models directly substitute for news content rather than transform it, which cuts against OpenAI's 'fair use' defense requiring that use not harm the market for the original work.

What to watch

The quotes come from The Times' own brief, not the underlying exhibits, which remain sealed. Whether courts accept these characterizations as evidence, rather than context-stripped excerpts, is likely to shape the case.