Germany: Landmark Court Decision Deals with AI Training and Copyright

By: Ronak Kalhor-Witzel(Norton Rose Fulbright)

The case of Robert Kneschke v. LAION e.V. represents a pivotal moment in the legal framework surrounding the use of copyrighted works for AI training.

As the first case of its kind in Germany, its outcome could redefine the intersection of AI development and copyright law, setting a precedent with far-reaching consequences for the AI industry and intellectual property protection.

With numerous stakeholders closely monitoring the proceedings, the decision could impact similar legal disputes across Europe and beyond.

Robert Kneschke, a seasoned German photographer, has initiated legal proceedings against LAION e.V. (“Large-scale Artificial Intelligence Open Network”), a non-profit organization known for creating vast datasets used in AI training. Kneschke claims that LAION included his photographic images in their “LAION 5B” dataset without his consent. This dataset has been instrumental in training popular AI models like Stable Diffusion. The lawsuit, filed on April 27, 2023, in the Hamburg Regional Court, challenges the legality of using copyrighted works in this manner and demands the removal of his images from the dataset.

Legal Basis and Implications

The German Copyright Act, updated by the EU Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market in 2021, introduced provisions for text and data mining, allowing such activities for commercial purposes under specific conditions. LAION argues that their use of metadata, text data, and URLs falls within these exceptions. However, the court’s decision could redefine how AI companies handle copyrighted material, potentially necessitating new licenses and compensation models…

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