GoKawiilCourt Filing: OpenAI, Microsoft Staff Flagged AI's Threat to Publishers
A newly unsealed filing in The New York Times' copyright lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft reveals internal communications showing employees at both companies recognized their AI tools could jeopardize the publishers whose content trains them. The filing suggests executives were aware of this risk even as they continued developing and deploying the technology.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
This disclosure strengthens the Times' argument that the companies knowingly built products that could erode the media ecosystem they depend on for training data, potentially bolstering claims of willful infringement. It also raises broader questions about whether AI firms are aware of, yet indifferent to, the economic harm their tools inflict on journalism and content creation industries.
- Internal filings show OpenAI and Microsoft staff privately acknowledged AI's risk to publishers.
- The evidence could strengthen the New York Times' copyright infringement case.
- The case highlights tension between AI development and sustainability of the news industry.
Source: wsj.com, 2026-09-17
Published there as: “Tech Companies’ Staff Knew Their AI Tools Posed ‘Existential Threat’ to Publishers”
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