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Federal District Court Denies Copyright to Visual Art Piece Generated Solely By Artificial Intelligence
On Aug. 18, 2023, U.S. District Court Judge Beryl A. Howell of the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia affirmed the U.S. Copyright Office's (Copyright Office or the Office) denial of a copyright application for a visual piece of art generated entirely by an artificial intelligence-driven computer called the "Creativity Machine." Thaler v. Perlnutter, No. 22-cv-1564, 2023 WL 5333236 (D.D.C. Aug. 18, 2023). Recognizing that U.S. "copyright law protects only works of human creation," the court determined that the Copyright Office "acted properly in denying copyright registration for a work created absent any human involvement."
The court's ruling is consistent with, but did not defer to, or reference, the Office's March 16, 2023 Copyright Guidance published in the Federal Register entitled "Works Containing Material Generated by Artificial Intelligence."(March Guidance). U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress, "Copyright Registration Guidance: Works Containing Material Generated by Artificial Intelligence," U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress, "Copyright Registration Guidance: Works Containing Material Generated by Artificial Intelligence," Statement of Policy, effective March 16, 2023. For a work to be copyrightable, per the March Guidance, "it must owe its origin to a human being." Furthermore, the Office "will not register works produced by a machine or mere mechanical process that operates randomly or automatically without any creative input or intervention from a human author."
Where Human Authorship Is Lacking, No Valid Copyright Exists
The Plaintiff in the lawsuit, Steven Thaler, filed an application identifying the Creativity Machine as the author of the visual artwork entitled "A Recent Entrance to Paradise." His application explains that the work was "autonomously created by computer algorithm." As the owner of the Creativity Machine, Thaler sought to obtain the copyright for himself, claiming it was computer- generated "work-for-hire." Thaler advanced several theories under which a copyright of the computer's work should transfer to him as its owner. He also raised the malleable nature of copyright law that covered works created with or involving new technologies.
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