CNN sues AI search startup Perplexity for content theft

CNN has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against AI search company Perplexity, accusing it of unlawfully copying and distributing CNN’s journalism. Brian Stelter reports for CNN that this marks the first AI copyright lawsuit filed by a television network.

The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. According to the lawsuit, CNN approached Perplexity about a content licensing deal but the two sides failed to agree on terms. The filing states that Perplexity therefore “knew that it was not permitted to access CNN’s content or to use its trademarks or service marks.”

A CNN spokesperson said: “CNN’s lawsuit stands for the proposition that Perplexity, a company valued at tens of billions of dollars, should not be able to steal from entities that create the original content Perplexity exploits.”

Perplexity’s chief communications officer Jesse Dwyer responded with a brief statement: “You can’t copyright facts.”

A split industry response

CNN’s action fits a broader pattern in the news industry. Publishers are pursuing two parallel strategies: suing AI companies for copyright infringement or striking commercial licensing deals with them.

Several outlets have already sued Perplexity, including News Corp, The New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, Encyclopedia Britannica, and the Japanese media company Yomiuri Shimbun. At the same time, Gannett, TIME, Le Monde, and Der Spiegel have announced licensing deals with the company.

CNN itself has pursued the licensing route with other AI firms. A deal with Meta was publicly reported last December. The network said it “actively embraces the opportunities AI creates” but insisted there is “no free option” for operators who refuse to negotiate.

Perplexity, responding earlier this year to suits by the Times and the Tribune, argued that attempts “to stop this novel technology by monopolizing facts will founder on bedrock principles of intellectual property law.”