November 29, 2024: A group of Canada’s leading news publishers, including the Toronto Star, Metroland Media, Postmedia, The Globe and Mail, The Canadian Press, and CBC, has filed a lawsuit against tech giant OpenAI. The lawsuit accuses the company of illegally using their news articles to train its artificial intelligence software, ChatGPT.
The legal action, filed Friday in Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice, is the first instance of an entire country’s major news outlets coming together to sue OpenAI. The coalition is seeking punitive damages, the return of profits generated from the alleged use of their articles, and a court order barring OpenAI from using their content in the future.
“Journalism is in the public interest. OpenAI using other companies’ journalism for their own commercial gain is not. It’s illegal,” the group said in a joint statement. The lawsuit claims up to $20,000 in statutory damages per article, which could make the case worth billions of dollars.
Torstar CEO Neil Oliver, in a memo to staff, criticized OpenAI’s actions, stating, “We will not stand by while tech companies steal our content.” Oliver emphasized the importance of journalism to democracy and the organization’s financial sustainability, adding that technological innovation must respect intellectual property laws.
The lawsuit reflects mounting tensions between AI companies and content creators, with the media industry advocating for fair use and proper compensation for their work. OpenAI has yet to respond to the allegations.
