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ARTICLE · 04 APRIL 2025

D.C. Circuit Rejects Copyrightability Of Artwork Created Autonomously By AI

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In a unanimous opinion issued by the D.C. Circuit on March 18, 2025, the Court of Appeals affirmed denial of Dr. Stephen Thaler's application to register a copyright protection...

United StatesIntellectual Property
Anna Saber
Anna Saber
Joachim Steinberg
Joachim Steinberg
William H. Frankel
William H. Frankel

In a unanimous opinion issued by the D.C. Circuit on March 18, 2025, the Court of Appeals affirmed denial of Dr. Stephen Thaler's application to register a copyright protection for a work created by his generative artificial intelligence system, holding that the Copyright Act requires human authorship.

Dr. Thaler's AI System and "A Recent Entrance to Paradise"

Dr. Thaler created a generative AI system named "Creativity Machine." Creativity Machine then autonomously created an artwork, which Thaler titled "A Recent Entrance to Paradise." Once Creativity Machine got to work, no human was involved. In 2019, Thaler applied for copyright registration from the US Copyright Office. In his application, Thaler only listed Creativity Machine as the author, and listed himself as the owner. Consistent with the long-standing requirement that copyright protection requires human authorship, the Copyright Office denied his application.

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