The ANI versus OpenAI case has taken a sharp turn as Microsoft-backed AI company told the Indian court that it was not within the jurisdiction of Indian courts to hear a copyright breach case brought by local news agency ANI as OpenAI had no presence in the country.
Last year, Indian news agency ANI sued OpenAI in Delhi High Court, alleging ChatGPT’s training used copyrighted news content without authorisation. ANI sought Rs 20 million in damages and an interim injunction to restrain Open AI from storing, publishing, reproducing, or using ANI’s copyrighted works.
However, OpenAI has now told the court that any order to remove training data powering its ChatGPT service would be inconsistent with its legal obligations in the United States, according to a Reuters report.
Before that, during a November hearing, OpenAI told the Delhi court it would not use ANI’s content anymore. Still, the news agency argued its published works were stored in ChatGPT’s memory and should be deleted.
OpenAI has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying its AI systems fairly use publicly available data.
The New Delhi court is due to hear the case on January 28.
This ongoing case marks ANI as the first media organisation in India to take legal action against OpenAI.
In December 2023, a similar lawsuit was filed by The New York Times, making it the first news outlet globally to initiate an AI copyright lawsuit. The Times argued that OpenAI’s AI models harm its business and undermine the credibility of its substantial investment in journalism.