Suleyman also suggested that the robots.txt file, which specifies which bots can't scrape a website, might prevent content theft. However, critics argue that robots.txt is not a legal document but a social contract, and some AI companies, including Microsoft partner OpenAI, are reportedly ignoring it.
Key takeaways:
- Microsoft AI boss Mustafa Suleyman has been criticized for incorrectly stating that content published on the open web is "freeware" that anyone can freely copy and use.
- Microsoft is currently facing multiple lawsuits alleging that it and OpenAI are stealing copyrighted online stories to train generative AI models.
- Suleyman suggests that the robots.txt file, which specifies which bots can't scrape a particular website, might prevent people from taking its content. However, it's noted that robots.txt is not a legal document.
- Despite many AI companies claiming that training on copyrighted content is "fair use", it's pointed out that fair use is not a social contract but a legal defense granted by a court after considering various factors.