The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune have filed separate copyright suits against Perplexity AI, escalating a broader clash between media companies and artificial-intelligence developers over the use of news content to train and power chatbots. At issue is whether ingesting and reproducing publisher material constitutes fair use or requires licensing. Perplexity dismissed the actions as part of a long history of challenges to emerging technology. Publishers, scarred by the internet’s disruption of ad revenue, are seeking to set guardrails and secure payment for their work. Researchers tracking the trend count roughly 20 lawsuits and more than 100 licensing or revenue-sharing deals to date. Legal experts say fast-moving AI competition incentivizes companies to vacuum up data, testing the edges of fair use. Attorneys for the newspapers argue that negotiated licenses are the ultimate solution, but litigation, including the Times’ landmark case against OpenAI, could take years to resolve.
Why publishers are taking AI firms to court, and what they want to gain
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