DOJ antitrust chief says AI companies must compensate artists
The DOJ's chief antitrust enforcer issued a warning to tech companies working in AI, cautioning them that they could face actions from regulators.
STANFORD, Calif. — The Justice Department’s chief antitrust enforcer issued a warning Thursday to tech companies working in artificial intelligence, cautioning that they could face action from regulators if they don’t find a way to fairly compensate artists, entertainers and other creators.
“If firms in the AI ecosystem violate the antitrust laws, the antitrust division will have something to say about that,” Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter said at a Stanford University conference attended by AI researchers, executives and other government officials.
The topic of the conference was the economic impact of generative AI systems like ChatGPT and how antitrust laws may apply to them. Compensation to creators is one area of concern, Kanter said.
“What incentive will tomorrow’s writers, creators, journalists, thinkers and artists have if AI has the ability to extract their ingenuity without appropriate compensation?” Kanter said. “The people who create and produce these inputs must be properly compensated."
The warning comes as tensions are spiking between AI companies and artists. Last week, actor Scarlett Johansson accused OpenAI of using an “eerily similar” voice to hers for their new GPT-4o chatbot after she declined the company’s request to provide her voice.
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