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Just Like a Human Being: The Anthropomorphism of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Copyright Law Arguments

Published onJan 21, 2025
Just Like a Human Being: The Anthropomorphism of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Copyright Law Arguments

Stacey M. Lantagne, Just Like a Human Being: The Anthropomorphism of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Copyright Law Arguments, 25 Wake Forest J. Bus. & Intell. Prop. L. 174 (2025).

Some version of what is called, anthropomorphically, “artificial intelligence” (“AI”) has been with us for a long time. The name AI denotes what the computer programs strive to do: “algorithmically simulate human reasoning or inference, often using statistical  methods.” Effectively, the goal of AI is to be “like” a human, such that tales of its imminent takeover of human society have been told for decades. For most of AI’s history, earlier iterations have made few ripples in the copyright landscape. However, the launch of novel  “generative” AI systems like ChatGPT, which appears to hold a conversation in response to typed questions, and Midjourney, which can create art based on whatever prompt a user can imagine, has sparked a flurry of copyright debates.  

In assessing the impact of generative AI on the copyright infringement landscape, proponents of the new technology posit that generative AI is doing what any human being does when creating new art. Normally, factual analogies are foundational in legal arguments, especially when discussing emerging issues. Here, analogizing is inevitably complicated by the universal and instinctive human tendency to anthropomorphize all technologies, especially technology with the attributes of generative AI. The pervasive human habit of treating technology like a social actor who can be seen as a friend, ally, and collaborator supports the conclusion that generative AI is “just like” a human, and one cannot condemn generative AI for actions humans would also take without likewise condemning humans for such behavior.  

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