Entertainment Unions Oppose Fair Use Exemption for OpenAI Training

SAG-AFTRA, the American Federation of Musicians, the Writers Guild of America West and the Writers Guild of America East filed an amicus brief opposing a categorical fair use exemption for AI training, according to an announcement from SAG-AFTRA. The filing concerns consolidated copyright litigation against OpenAI involving news organizations and writers.

The unions argue that courts should assess fair use individually rather than permit a blanket exemption for training AI models. They say unauthorized use of copyrighted work without consent, credit or payment harms creative professionals and licensing markets.

"The harms of unlicensed training fall not just on companies like the News Plaintiffs, but on the countless professionals behind the work," the 34-page brief reads, Deadline reported. It also says a categorical exemption could conflict with terms negotiated by entertainment unions that provide notice and bargaining rights when covered work is licensed to train commercial generative AI systems. The four unions represent more than 250,000 entertainment and media workers.