However, Stubblebine acknowledges that voluntary measures may not deter spammers and other entities that ignore such requests. He suggests that a coalition of large organizations could counterbalance unethical AI platforms. However, the formation of such partnerships is slow due to the complex legal and ethical issues surrounding AI and copyright. The article suggests that a major internet entity like Wikipedia might need to take the lead in this matter.
Key takeaways:
- Medium has announced that it will block OpenAI’s GPTBot, joining other media outlets like CNN and the New York Times in disallowing the agent from scraping their web content.
- Medium's CEO, Tony Stubblebine, criticizes AI companies for making money off writers' content without consent or compensation, and considers the current state of generative AI as not beneficial to the Internet.
- Stubblebine admits that the voluntary approach of blocking AI scrapers may not be effective against spammers and others who ignore such requests, but active measures could lead to escalation and legal issues.
- Medium is actively recruiting for a coalition of platforms to address fair use in the age of AI, but progress is slow due to the newness of AI in publishing and copyright, and the unresolved legal and ethical questions surrounding it.