OpenAI enters into a two-year agreement with Associated Press to share access to some of its news content

ChatGPT parent OpenAI has struck a deal with The Associated Press to license the publication’s sprawling archive of news stories — all to better the increasingly popular chatbot, which has the uncanny ability to mimic human writing. to train.

The price of the deal – which was confirmed by both parties on Thursday – has not been disclosed, but it covers a wealth of content dating back to 1985 and will remain in place for two years.

In statements announcing the deal, the two companies added that they also “explore potential use cases for generative AI in [their own] news products and services’ – but did not specify how.

Under the leadership of CEO Sam Altman, OpenAI released ChatGPT just a few months ago – and the technology has boomed ever since. That said, the rollout has already proven polarizing, sparking an explosion in “generative AI” products that can recreate text.

While many remain skeptical — or outright outraged — about the new technology, OpenAI and AP on Thursday expressed confidence in its future place in the world, saying they both “believe in the responsible creation and use of these AI systems.”

Scroll down for video:

Under the leadership of CEO Sam Altman, OpenAI released ChatGPT just a few months ago – and the technology has boomed ever since. That said, the rollout has already proved polarizing, sparking a boom in ‘generative AI’ products that can recreate text

“We are pleased that OpenAI recognizes that fact-based, unbiased news content is essential to this evolving technology and that they respect the value of our intellectual property,” said Kristin Heitmann, TAP senior vice president and chief revenue officer.

“AP strongly supports a framework that ensures that intellectual property is protected and content creators are fairly compensated for their work.”

The organizations further clarified in a joint statement. “The agreement makes OpenAI licensing part of AP’s text archive, while AP will leverage OpenAI’s technology and product expertise.”

The sudden announcement comes as it becomes more and more known that OpenAI – based in San Francisco – and other AI companies have to process large volumes of written work, such as books and news articles, to make their creations possible.

As a result, OpenAI has become the focus of multiple federal investigations and lawsuits, with several alleging that the company violated copyright law by training its chatbot to “take” their written works without permission.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also announced that it has opened an investigation into OpenAI this week, alleging it may have violated consumer protection laws by publishing defamatory information and compromising data.

Concerns about ChatGPT’s propensity and potential to spread falsehoods have grown, based on how difficult it is for them to be noticed given the strong command of the system’s grammar and human language.

The price of the deal – which was confirmed by both parties on Thursday – has not been disclosed, but it covers a wealth of content dating back to 1985 and will remain in place for two years. Pictured is the AP’s press room in Lower Manhattan

ChatGPT and other platforms mimic human speech by incorporating text from Wikipedia, Scribd, and other websites. As a result, the Silicon Valley-based parent company has become the subject of several lawsuits for alleged copyright infringement

Kristin Heitmann, TAP’s Senior VP and Chief Revenue Officer, said of the deal on Thursday, “We are pleased that OpenAI recognizes that fact-based, unbiased news content is essential to this evolving technology, and that they respect the value of our intellectual property.”

On Wednesday, the FTC sent out a 20-page request for documents on how OpenAI addresses risk related to its AI models — weeks after CEO Bankman, who invented ChatGPT, admitted his creation could do “significant harm to the world” in the wrong way. hands. FTC Chair Lina Khan is pictured at a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Thursday

The FTC also asks OpenAI to describe how it refines its language models to address their tendency to “hallucinate” or make up answers when the chatbot doesn’t know the answer to a question

And as new, updated versions of the tool continue to be released, the uproar over ChatGPT’s future place in the workplace, news, and literature seems to have come to a head.

On Thursday, the FTC sent a 20 pages demand records about how OpenAI addresses risks associated with its AI models – weeks after CEO Bankman, who invented ChatGPT, admitted that his creation could do “significant harm to the world” if it gets into the wrong hands.

More than 4,000 writers have expressed belief that, in fact, is the case, after signing a letter late last month to the Bankman, as well as the CEOs of Google, Microsoft, Meta and other AI developers, accusing them of exploitative practices in building chatbots that ‘mimic and regurgitate’ their language.

Notable names signing the de facto petition included Nora Roberts, Margaret Atwood, Louise Erdrich, and Jodi Picoult — while others have taken it upon themselves to specifically sue OpenAI.

That class includes a pair of best-selling Massachusetts novelists, Mona Awad and Paul Tremblay, who have filed a federal class action lawsuit against ChatGPT’s parent, alleging that it violated copyright law by training its chatbot to use their books without permission. ‘to take’.

Another figure filing a lawsuit against OpenAI – which was founded in 2015 – is comedian Sarah Silverman, who has also accused the company of copyright infringement.

The AP said it doesn’t currently use generative AI in its news stories, but has been using other forms of AI for nearly a decade, including to automate corporate earnings reports and recap some sporting events.

It also runs a program that helps local news organizations integrate AI into their operations, and recently launched an AI-powered image archive investigation.