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ARTICLE · 25 MARCH 2025

DC Circuit Holds That AI Cannot Be An Author Under Copyright Law

Goodwin Procter LLP
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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed the Copyright Office's position that artificial intelligence cannot be an author under the Copyright Act.

United StatesIntellectual Property
Robert Carroll
Robert Carroll
Bethany P. Withers
Bethany P. Withers
Stefan Mentzer
Stefan Mentzer
Riley Wyberg
Riley Wyberg

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed the Copyright Office's position that artificial intelligence cannot be an author under the Copyright Act.1 The case answers one of the many copyright questions arising from the recent advancements in AI. Simply put, individuals and companies cannot obtain copyright protection for works created solely by AI.

Background

Dr. Stephen Thaler, a computer scientist, designed and developed a generative AI system he named the "Creativity Machine." Dr. Thaler's Creativity Machine created an image entitled "A Recent Entrance to Paradise."

Dr. Thaler filed an application to register the copyright in the image, listing the Creativity Machine as the "author" of the work. The Copyright Office denied Dr. Thaler's application because the image was not created by a human being. Dr. Thaler requested reconsideration by the Copyright Office but was unsuccessful.

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