Over One Lakh Authors Seek a Share of Anthropic’s Copyright Settlement

A significant AI copyright dispute has emerged with over 120,000 authors and rights holders filing claims against Anthropic for a share of its $1.5 billion class-action settlement. The lawsuit alleges the unauthorized use of copyrighted books to train Anthropic’s AI models, specifically Claude. Claims have been submitted for 91% of the 480,000+ works covered by the deal, representing a remarkably high claims rate compared to typical consumer class actions. While the settlement is considered historic, some authors object, arguing the payout is insufficient or unfairly excludes certain copyright holders.

Initially, Anthropic faced accusations of using pirated books without permission or payment. A US District Judge previously ruled that Anthropic’s use of the works for training qualified as fair use, but also found copyright infringement in storing a large library of pirated books. A potential trial regarding damages, which could have reached hundreds of billions of dollars, was avoided through the settlement.

The legal firms representing the authors, Susman Godfrey and Lieff Cabraser, are seeking $187.5 million in legal fees, a reduction from their initial request. A final approval hearing for the settlement is scheduled for May 14th, with the outcome potentially setting a precedent for future copyright cases involving AI training data.

(Source：Times Now News)