U.S. Copyright Office Issues Guidelines for AI- Generated Work

On 16-03-2023, the Copyright office (office) has issued the guidelines for Copyright Registration for AI Generated Material to elucidate its practices for examining and registering the AI-technology generated works. It highlights the requirement of human authorship to secure copyright protection for AI generated works.

The U.S. Copyright law mandates the requirement of Human Authorship to secure a copyright. Thus, a work must be product of human creativity even if it indulges AI-technology for the generation of the work. Fundamentally, the term “author” used in the U.S. Copyright Act, 1976, excludes non-humans. Thus, the office’s registration guidance requires that the works must be product of human authorship.

Guidelines for copyright applications involving AI -generated materials-

1. Applicants have a duty to disclose the inclusion of AI-generated content in a work submitted for registration and provide a brief explanation of the human author’s contribution towards the work;

2. Process for submission of applications:

   • Individuals using AI technology in their creation may claim copyright protection for their contributions using the Standard Application, providing a brief statement in the ‘Author Created’ field.

   • There must be no enlisting of an AI technology or the company that provided it as an author or co-author, if only it was used for creating their work.

   • There must be exclusion of AI-generated content from the application that is more than de minimis.

   • Applicants who are not thorough with the application form may simply provide a general statement that the submitted work contains AI material.

3. Correction of previously submitted or pending applications:

   • Applicants who have submitted the applications for works containing AI-generated material must check that they have adequately disclosed the required information to the office.

   • If adequate information is not provided on the already submitted application, steps should be taken to correct the information for the registration to remain effective.

   • For pending applications before the copyright office, notification must be given to the Copyright Office’s Public information Office regarding the AI- generated material.

   • For already processed applications that resulted in registration, the applicant should submit a supplementary registration correcting the public record.