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AI basics

We delve into the fascinating realm of GenAI and how you might apply it responsibly to your studies at ACU.

AI & Copyright

  • AI technology is ubiquitous and as a result, the impact on copyright law is varied. The context of how you are using the AI is one of the critical factors in discussing the copyright concerns.
  • AI is not a settled technology. Governments around the world are still evaluating how to legislate copyright concerns of the inputs and outputs of AI.

Current AI and copyright issues

  • Enterprise AI’s versus Public AI’s

Enterprise AI’s are AI’s that are not publicly available and are licensed by companies to be used within companies across the companies propriety data. They usually limit the amount of data being sent back to the AI company for training purposes, as it is propriety data (trademarks, copyright, trade secrets), or for privacy reasons. Works created by licensed AI’s within a licensed company, the copyright would remain with the company.

Public AI’s are open to anyone AI’s (free or subscription), these AI’s are more likely to use any inputs for training the AI (check your terms of service), and it is less likely that outputs have any copyright protection.

  • AI’s contained within traditional software.

Many traditional software packages now include an AI within their system, for example Adobe has Firefly. If you have a licence to use the product, then you can use the AI. Check your terms of service for concerns regarding whether inputs are used for training, and whether outputs can be protected by copyright.

  • Copyright ownership of prompts

It is recognised that you can copyright own the prompts that you enter into an AI, standard copyright rules apply.

  • Copyright ownership of outputs

Ownership of copyright works require sufficient human input. For AI’s, this area is controversial at the moment. It is generally thought that there is insufficient human input for an AI’s output to be protected by copyright, but this may change in the future.

Do’s and don’ts of copyright and public AI

Do:

  • Check the terms of service to see what the AI will do with the data you input.
  • Reference when you have used an AI output in your work.
  • Keep a record of your prompts when you have used an AI output in your work.

Don’t:

  • Load copyright works that you do not have the copyright rights to.

AI, copyright and Indigenous Culture

AI is increasingly being used for creative and artistic innovation. But how does AI interface with Indigenous culture and knowledge?

AI has the potential to assist people in many capacities. Despite this, AI raises issues and risks for Copyright, Intellectual Property (IP), and Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP). This blog post discusses the current landscape of AI and copyright, then explores how AI connects to ICIP. It outlines some key issues and concerns, identifies opportunities where AI can be beneficial, and presents ways to protect ICIP in projects that involve AI.