Source: The Guardian

The Guardian reports that a UK government minister has expressed strong sympathy for artists and creators currently embroiled in disputes over artificial intelligence and copyright infringement. Amidst an ongoing government consultation regarding a new intellectual property framework, the minister suggested that the state should take a harder line against technology companies that use copyrighted works without permission to train their models. Specifically, there were calls to effectively blacklist AI companies involved in unresolved IP disputes from receiving lucrative public sector contracts.

The discussion is framed by recent high-profile litigation, including a massive $1.5 billion lawsuit that has highlighted the economic threat generative AI poses to the creative sector . The minister's comments indicate a potential policy pivot away from a purely pro-innovation "wild west" approach towards a model that enforces strict licensing regimes. This stance aims to ensure that human creators are fairly compensated for their intellectual labor and that the rapid deployment of AI does not cannibalize the industries that provide its training data.