“The Bartz v. Anthropic settlement represents a historic step toward accountability and fairness in the AI era. At $1.5 billion, it is the largest copyright recovery of its kind, confirming that creators deserve meaningful compensation when their works are used without authorization. Importantly, the case also clarifies a path forward: AI innovation and respect for copyright are not incompatible. Just as the music industry built licensing frameworks to support digital distribution, this settlement signals the start of a more legitimate market-based system for AI training data. For independent creators, who are often most vulnerable to misappropriation, this outcome is a powerful affirmation that copyright remains essential to a sustainable creative ecosystem.” said President and CEO of A2IM (American Association of Independent Music, Dr. Richard James Burgess MBE
A2IM is a longtime member of the Copyright Alliance, an advocacy coalition designed to protect intellectual property and to return the value of copyrights to their owners. Please see Copyright Alliance CEO's Keith Kupferschmid's comments on the settlement, below.
More on the 'Bartz V. Anhtropic' Case Settlement from the Copyright Alliance:
Washington, DC—The Copyright Alliance, which represents the copyright interests of over two million individual creators and more than 15,000 organizations across the spectrum of copyright disciplines, released a statement regarding the September 5 announcement of the Bartz v. Anthropic AI copyright case settlement details.
According to Copyright Alliance CEO Keith Kupferschmid, "The settlement in the Bartz v. Anthropic case is a significant victory not only for book publishers and authors but for all copyright owners whose works are pirated and then used by AI companies for training or other purposes.
"The proposed settlement, which amounts to at least $1.5 billion, is one of the largest in the history of copyright. As such, the settlement is a thunderclap for AI companies and anyone else attempting to copy and use pirated works from illicit sources for AI training or other uses. The settlement confirms that AI companies that are responsible and ethical should not be copying pirated works from illicit sources and any company that does so will be subject to serious consequences.
"Because, like Anthropic, many other AI companies have also been using these so-called shadow libraries and other illicit sources to access and use pirated works for training their AI systems, the outcome of this case is likely not unique and will apply in many other cases and to many other AI companies.
"To be clear, the settlement doesn’t spell the end for Anthropic or any other AI company. While the settlement amount is very significant and represents a clear victory for the publishers and authors in the class, it also proves what we have been saying all along—that AI companies can afford to compensate copyright owners for their works without it undermining their ability to continue to innovate and compete."