Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the rights of (a) authors and (b) other creators are upheld in relation to the use of their copyrighted works in the training of artificial intelligence systems; and whether he plans to introduce requirements for (i) transparency and (ii) compensation for historic use.

Copying protected material in the UK infringes copyright unless it is licensed, or a copyright exception applies. There are mechanisms for redress in cases of infringement.

The Government’s consultation on copyright and AI closed on 25 February. This sought views on giving authors and other creators greater control over use of their material to train AI models, supporting their ability to be remunerated, and requiring AI developers to be more transparent about the works used in AI training.

The Government’s priority now is to review all responses to the consultation. The Government will set out its proposals in due course.