Delhi HC Summons OpenAI in Copyright Case, Appoints Amicus Curiae for Guidance

Delhi high court on Tuesday summoned the US-based artificial intelligence (AI) company OpenAI in a copyright infringement case filed by news agency ANI. The agency accused OpenAI’s ChatGPT of falsely crediting political news to ANI, which could have amounted to the spread of fake news. Although ANI insisted on a permanent and mandatory injunction to be issued against the company, a single-judge bench headed by Justice Amit Bansal observed that the case is first of its kind and requires discussion before arriving at any conclusion. 

Apart from issuing summons to the company, Justice Bansal mentioned that an amicus curiae will be appointed soon to help the court in deciding the matter. 

“Given the range of issues involved in the present suit as well as the issues arising on account of latest technological advancement vis-a-vis copyrights of various copyright owners, this court is of view that an amicus curiae be appointed,” the court stated, according to the Indian Express. 

OpenAI vs ANI: Arguments of both sides 

Advocate Sidhant Kumar Marwah appeared on behalf of ANI, while the US-based company is represented by senior counsel Amit Sibal. 

Marwah argued that simply because news information is publicly available, it doesn’t mean the same can be copied or stored. The use of ANI’s contents by the AI company is a matter of public concern and has the potential of harming the news agency’s reputation and credibility, he added. 

“This service also gives a false attribution to me. For example, it says Rahul Gandhi, leader of opposition, gave an interview to ANI when no interview was given. That is the propensity to not just hurt my private rights but also spread fake news,” Marwah said, according to the Mint. 

While Amit Sibal, who appeared for OpenAI, denied the allegations and contested that copyright laws do not apply to facts or ideas. Additionally, Sibal also cited cases faced by the company on similar grounds in the US, Canada and Germany and pointed out that not even one of them has led to an injunctions order. 

“...There is no monopoly on facts...Copyright does not protect facts, it protects expression...,” said Sibal. 

The ongoing case has made ANI the first media organisation in India to take legal action against OpenAI. Earlier in December 2023, a similar case was filed against the company by the New York Times. The case was the first AI copyright lawsuit filed by any news outlet. The news organisation contested that the AI models used by the company are detrimental for its business and severely impact the credibility of its “massive investment in its journalism”.