The U.S. Copyright Office has issued new guidelines confirming that AI-generated content can receive copyright protection when humans make substantial contributions or modifications. This clarification came in a document titled “Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, Part 2: Copyrightability,” as reported by Carl Franzen for VentureBeat.
The guidelines outline three scenarios where AI-generated material qualifies for copyright protection:
- when human-authored content is incorporated into AI output,
- when humans significantly modify AI-generated material,
- or when human contribution shows sufficient creative expression.
Shira Perlmutter, register of copyrights and director of the U.S. Copyright Office, emphasized that human creativity remains central to copyright protection. The office maintains that simply providing text prompts to AI systems does not qualify as authorship for copyright purposes.
The new guidance particularly affects enterprises using AI in their creative processes. For example, companies can now be assured of copyright protection when integrating their brands into AI-generated media, provided there is substantial human involvement.
The Copyright Office reviewed over 10,000 comments from creators, legal experts, and technology companies before concluding that current copyright laws are adequate for handling AI-related issues. No legislative changes were recommended at this time.
This decision represents a shift from previous positions, notably in the case of Kris Kashtanova’s AI-generated graphic novel “Zarya of the Dawn,” where copyright protection was initially granted then rescinded.
The office plans to release a third section addressing the legal implications of training AI on copyrighted material, which will be particularly relevant for companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, currently facing lawsuits over training data usage.
The guidelines clarify that using AI tools for editing, refining, or generating preliminary ideas remains acceptable within copyright law, provided humans maintain creative control over the final work. This applies to various media forms, including text, images, video, and music.
Creative professionals have largely welcomed the announcement. AI filmmakers and artists see it as validation of their work, while the guidelines maintain protection for human creativity in an increasingly AI-influenced creative landscape.