Trump Administration Sides With OpenAI in NYT Copyright Case

The government's letter is a major intervention in a case that began in 2023, when the New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement. The fair use doctrine is central, and the administration's view could influence not just this case but related ones, as the letter applies to all parties in this and related cases. This comes amid a wave of lawsuits, including music labels suing Anthropic over its Claude tool, where the outcome could hinge on similar fair use arguments.

The administration's stance aligns with recent court decisions, which have been mixed. The Meta case was a win for AI companies, while the Anthropic case resulted in a massive $1.5 billion payment, though the judge noted AI training itself was fair use. The government's letter argues that restricting LLM development would "thwart" progress and "hinder American prosperity," which may signal a broader policy push to protect U.S. AI leadership.

The judge is not obliged to follow the government's argument, but it carries significant weight coming from the Department of Justice. Critics, including the Author's Guild, see it as a misunderstanding of copyright law. The outcome will likely have ripple effects for creators and AI companies, as dozens of similar lawsuits proceed.