This reporter is Wang Zhou

Nowadays, by entering prompt words in the AI (artificial intelligence) model, you can get text, pictures, code, and other content output. While generative AI technology greatly improves the efficiency of "production", the related legal issues brought about by it cannot be ignored. In the case of an AI-generated image, is it a "work" protected by copyright law? If so, to whom? Not long ago, the Beijing Internet Court concluded a case, which is a useful exploration of these cutting-edge issues in judicial practice.

Previously, Mr. Li used a professional open-source large-scale model drawing software to generate a picture by entering prompt words. Mr. Li tagged the image as "AI painting" and posted it on his personal social platform. When Ms. Liu, a netizen, saw the picture, cropped Mr. Li's signature watermark, and used the picture as a picture for her online article. Mr. Li believed that Ms. Liu's actions had infringed on his right of authorship and the right of information network dissemination, so he sued the Beijing Internet Court.

Is the picture in question a work within the meaning of copyright law? Zhu Ge, the presiding judge of this case, introduced that in light of the facts of the case, the key to whether the pictures involved in the case are "works" or not meets the two requirements of "originality" and "human intellectual achievements".

"Judging from the generation process of the pictures involved in the case, the plaintiff designed the picture by entering prompts and setting parameters, and continued to add prompts and modify parameters, and finally obtained the pictures involved in the case, reflecting the plaintiff's aesthetic choice and personality judgment. In the absence of evidence to the contrary, it may be determined that the pictures involved in the case were independently completed by the plaintiff and possess the element of 'originality'. Zhu Ge introduced, "These require the intellectual investment of the plaintiff, and the pictures involved in the case should belong to the category of 'works' protected by the copyright law." ”

Who is the author of the picture in question and enjoys the copyright in accordance with the law?

"In the past, the default method of art was 'hands-on drawing'. In the age of artificial intelligence, people don't need to do anything, but that doesn't mean that there is no need to choose and arrange the elements of the picture. In response to this problem, Zhu Ge further explained to reporters, "The pictures involved in the case are directly generated based on the plaintiff's intellectual investment and reflect the plaintiff's personalized expression, so the plaintiff is the author of the pictures involved in the case and enjoys the copyright of the pictures in question." ”

In the end, the court ordered the defendant to apologize and compensate the plaintiff 500 yuan, and neither party appealed. Ji Dongmei, a lecturer at the Law School of Capital University of Economics and Business, said: "The judgment recognizes AI-generated content as a 'work' within the meaning of the Copyright Law, reflecting respect for the human intelligence embodied in the application of AI." At the same time, it also conforms to the background of the rapid development and wide application of artificial intelligence technology, which is conducive to the dissemination and sharing of cultural products and promotes cultural diversity and innovation. ”