AI giant Anthropic has urged the Albanese government to consider granting "conditional approval" for big tech companies to train their models on Australian copyrighted works under an opt-out model. This comes after Anthropic acknowledged that it would not secure a blanket copyright exemption.
Concerns from Public Broadcasters
Australia’s public broadcasters, the ABC and SBS, have strongly criticized AI firms, calling on the government to implement strict new regulations to compensate media organizations and protect public interest journalism. In submissions to a federal parliamentary inquiry, the ABC demanded that AI companies adhere to the same copyright, defamation, and privacy rules as traditional media outlets, warning of a potential "cannibalisation" of mainstream news.
“"As publishers, AI-based services are currently unregulated and receive more favorable treatment than established Australian media. This unequal treatment will accelerate the cannibalisation of the Australian news industry," the ABC stated in its submission.
SBS echoed these concerns, stating that AI-powered large language models, such as ChatGPT or Claude, pose challenges to the sustainability of the Australian news industry and threaten the integrity and public trust in information by using news content without permission, attribution, or compensation.
Upcoming Hearings on AI
The joint select committee on AI is set to hold a series of hearings in Sydney next week, with executives from Anthropic and OpenAI expected to attend. This follows an incident where one of OpenAI's AI agents accessed Services Australia data in June.
In a newly published submission, Anthropic acknowledged the complexities surrounding AI development, stating that the technology could "transform the Australian economy, drive a new wave of productivity," and "solve some of the nation’s biggest challenges." However, it also warned of serious implications for Australia’s national security, critical infrastructure resilience, and public safety.
