Just another summer or a new era: artificial authors

Turkmenoglu, Abdulbaki (2023). Just another summer or a new era: artificial authors. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

Preview

Turkmenoglu2023PhD.pdf
Text - Accepted Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution.
Download (2MB) | Preview

Abstract

Through recent history, the development and advancement of machines has constantly challenged the concept of intellectual property and its foundational principles. The mass production of works of authorship through machines led to the emergence of copyright law as a means of protecting the rights of creators. As technology continues to evolve, the development of new forms of machine, such as artificially intelligent systems, has sparked discussions of the concept of authorship in copyright law. Can these advanced machines be deemed creative and produce original works? If so, who should be recognised as the author of these outputs – the creator of the program, the user or the machine itself? With the realisation that artificial intelligence systems, which have flourished in recent years, can produce unique works that are indistinguishable from those created by humans, these questions highlight the need for a careful reconsideration of the fundamental concepts of authorship like creativity and originality in copyright law. Determining authorship in the context of generative AI has significant implications for the allocation of both economic and moral rights in the realm of intellectual property and for shaping the future of copyright law.

This thesis frames these and similar questions that generative machines prompt, and revisits the fundamental concepts of copyright related to authorship. It addresses the issues raised in the field of copyright law by developments in artificial intelligence in a way that serves the purposes of that law. In the end, it briefly proposes a new framework that would help address these developments in a way that serves the purposes of intellectual property law of promoting cultural heritage and technological development and protecting authors’ rights. To do so, it first examines the concepts of creativity and originality in copyright law. It then evaluates the concept of authorship in the context of artificial intelligence by considering arguments about these concepts. To do this, it looks at the main justifications for intellectual property and the approaches to authorship in copyright laws that are influenced by these justifications. Finally, the study presents a new approach to authorship by arguing that artificial authorship by developing technology is already happening, so the inclusion of this concept in copyright law is essential.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):