Publishers want to take Google to court over AI training
Publishers Seek to Join Copyright Lawsuit Against Google Over AI Training
Publishers Hachette Book Group and Cengage Group have asked a California federal court for permission to intervene in a proposed class action lawsuit against Google, accusing the tech giant of misusing copyrighted material to train its artificial intelligence systems.
In a filing made on Thursday, the publishers alleged that Google “engaged in one of the most prolific infringements of copyrighted materials in history” by copying content from Hachette books and Cengage textbooks without permission to develop its AI capabilities. The move, if approved, could significantly increase the potential damages at stake in the case.
Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the publishers’ bid to join the lawsuit.
The publishers said their participation would strengthen the case, arguing that they are uniquely positioned to address key legal, factual and evidentiary issues before the court. “We believe our participation will bolster the case, especially because publishers are uniquely positioned to address many of the legal, factual, and evidentiary questions before the Court,” said Maria Pallante, chief executive of the Association of American Publishers, in a statement.
The lawsuit was originally brought by groups of visual artists and authors who claim Google unlawfully used their work to train its generative AI systems. It is part of a broader wave of high-profile litigation by artists, authors, music labels and other copyright holders against technology companies over the use of copyrighted material in AI training.
The publishers cited 10 examples of textbooks and other books that Google allegedly misused, including works by authors Scott Turow and N.K. Jemisin, to train its Gemini large language model. They are seeking an unspecified amount of monetary damages on behalf of themselves and a broader class of authors and publishers.
The case echoes other major disputes in the sector. Last year, AI startup Anthropic settled a lawsuit with a group of authors for $1.5 billion over claims related to the use of their work to train its AI chatbot, Claude.
US District Judge Eumi Lee will decide whether to approve the publishers’ request to intervene in the Google case.
