Authors Sue Microsoft Over Alleged Use of Pirated Books for AI Training

Authors Sue Microsoft Over Alleged Use of Pirated Books for AI Training
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A group of authors has filed a lawsuit against Microsoft, alleging the company used nearly 200,000 pirated books to train its Megatron artificial intelligence model without permission. The case, filed in a New York federal court, claims Microsoft infringed on copyrights by using the texts to generate derivative content mimicking the authors’ style and themes.

Plaintiffs include Kai Bird, Jia Tolentino, and Daniel Okrent, who are seeking an injunction and statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work. The lawsuit follows similar complaints against other tech firms like Meta, OpenAI, and Anthropic, all accused of using copyrighted material without consent to develop generative AI tools.

Microsoft has not yet responded to the allegations. The case comes shortly after a federal judge ruled that while using copyrighted works in AI training may fall under “fair use,” companies could still face liability if the materials were obtained illegally. The outcome may shape future AI copyright standards.