A federal judge has approved a $1.5 billion settlement between AI company Anthropic and authors who accused the company of illegally using nearly half a million copyrighted books to train its Claude chatbot. The settlement will pay authors and publishers approximately $3,000 per book covered by the agreement, marking a significant legal precedent for AI companies’ use of copyrighted material in training data.
What you should know: U.S. District Judge William Alsup approved the settlement in San Francisco federal court after addressing concerns about fair distribution and author notification.
• The settlement covers existing books but does not apply to future works.
• Authors and publishers must submit claims forms to receive their portion of the settlement fund.
• Judge Alsup had previously ruled in June that training AI on copyrighted books wasn’t inherently illegal, but found that Anthropic wrongfully acquired millions of books through pirate websites.
Key concerns addressed: The judge’s primary worry centered on ensuring all eligible authors would be properly notified about the settlement to prevent anyone from being left out.
• Alsup was concerned about potential “back room” dealings between major industry groups like the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers that could pressure lesser-known authors.
• The parties submitted a Monday filing demonstrating they had established robust notification systems to reach all covered authors and publishers.
• A claims process was designed to ensure authors could either accept the settlement or opt out to preserve their legal rights.
What they’re saying: Bestselling thriller novelist Andrea Bartz, one of the original plaintiffs, strongly endorsed the settlement in a court declaration.
• “Together, authors and publishers are sending a message to AI companies: You are not above the law, and our intellectual property isn’t yours for the taking,” Bartz wrote.
• Attorneys for the authors stated they believe the settlement “respects existing contracts and is consistent with due process.”
The big picture: This settlement establishes important precedent for how AI companies must handle copyrighted content in their training datasets, potentially influencing future litigation against other major AI developers who have faced similar copyright infringement claims.
Recent Stories
DOE fusion roadmap targets 2030s commercial deployment as AI drives $9B investment
The Department of Energy has released a new roadmap targeting commercial-scale fusion power deployment by the mid-2030s, though the plan lacks specific funding commitments and relies on scientific breakthroughs that have eluded researchers for decades. The strategy emphasizes public-private partnerships and positions AI as both a research tool and motivation for developing fusion energy to meet data centers' growing electricity demands. The big picture: The DOE's roadmap aims to "deliver the public infrastructure that supports the fusion private sector scale up in the 2030s," but acknowledges it cannot commit to specific funding levels and remains subject to Congressional appropriations. Why...
Oct 17, 2025Tying it all together: Credo’s purple cables power the $4B AI data center boom
Credo, a Silicon Valley semiconductor company specializing in data center cables and chips, has seen its stock price more than double this year to $143.61, following a 245% surge in 2024. The company's signature purple cables, which cost between $300-$500 each, have become essential infrastructure for AI data centers, positioning Credo to capitalize on the trillion-dollar AI infrastructure expansion as hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI rapidly build out massive computing facilities. What you should know: Credo's active electrical cables (AECs) are becoming indispensable for connecting the massive GPU clusters required for AI training and inference. The company...
Oct 17, 2025Vatican launches Latin American AI network for human development
The Vatican hosted a two-day conference bringing together 50 global experts to explore how artificial intelligence can advance peace, social justice, and human development. The event launched the Latin American AI Network for Integral Human Development and established principles for ethical AI governance that prioritize human dignity over technological advancement. What you should know: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the Vatican's research body for social issues, organized the "Digital Rerum Novarum" conference on October 16-17, combining academic research with practical AI applications. Participants included leading experts from MIT, Microsoft, Columbia University, the UN, and major European institutions. The conference...