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Meta Faces New Legal Hurdles Over AI Training as Authors Seek Zuckerberg Testimony

• By John K. Waters
• 09/25/2024

Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, has failed in a legal attempt to prevent a group of U.S. authors from deposing CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a lawsuit accusing the tech giant of improperly using copyrighted books to train its artificial intelligence systems.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas Hixson in San Francisco ruled on Tuesday that the deposition of Zuckerberg is justified, given evidence that suggests the Meta CEO was directly involved in decisions related to AI training. The decision marks a significant development in the case, where authors, including comedian Sarah Silverman, have accused Meta of infringing on their copyrights by using their works to train large language models for its AI systems.

The authors' lawsuit, filed last year, mirrors similar legal action against OpenAI, the company behind the popular ChatGPT platform. Both cases highlight growing concerns among creators about the unauthorized use of their work in the rapidly expanding AI industry.

Meta had argued that Zuckerberg’s deposition was unnecessary, stating that the plaintiffs had no substantiation for their claims that Zuckerberg held specialized knowledge of the matter. However, Judge Hixson countered that Zuckerberg, as the "chief decision maker and policy setter" for Meta's AI branch, had key insights into the development of the AI models in question.

The case, Kadrey v. Meta Platforms Inc, is being heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The lawsuit adds to a broader wave of litigation from copyright owners, including visual artists and music publishers, who claim tech companies have misused their content to train AI systems. The companies argue that their actions are protected under the doctrine of fair use.

Adding further complexity to the case, U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria, who is overseeing the Meta case, recently allowed David Boies, a high-profile litigator, to join the plaintiffs' legal team. This move followed Chhabria’s earlier criticism of the plaintiffs' lead attorney Joseph Saveri regarding the handling of the case. Saveri, while declining to comment on the specifics of the Zuckerberg deposition, said he welcomed the added expertise to strengthen the case.

Representatives for Meta have not yet responded to the court's rulings or requests for comment.

As the legal battles over AI and copyright infringement intensify, the outcome of this case could have far-reaching consequences for the tech industry and its use of generative AI models.