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Who Owns AI-Generated Content

Who owns AI-generated content in the United States? Learn about the laws regarding intellectual property rights and where AI-generated content fits in.

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Introduction

Our text compare tool is a fantastic, lightweight tool that provides plagiarism checks between two documents. Whether you are a student, blogger or publisher, this tool offers a great solution to detect and compare similarities between any two pieces of text. In this article, I will discuss the different ways to use the tool, the primary features of the tool and who this tool is for. There is an FAQ at the bottom if you run into any issues when trying to use the tool.

What makes Originality.ai’s text comparison tool stand out?

Keyword density helper – This tool comes with a built-in keyword density helper in some ways similar to the likes of SurferSEO or MarketMuse the difference being, ours is free! This feature shows the user the frequency of single or two word keywords in a document, meaning you can easily compare an article you have written against a competitor to see the major differences in keyword densities. This is especially useful for SEO’s who are looking to optimize their blog content for search engines and improve the blog’s visibility.

Ways to compare

File compare – Text comparison between files is a breeze with our tool. Simply select the files you would like to compare, hit “Upload” and our tool will automatically insert the content into the text area, then simply hit “Compare” and let our tool show you where the differences in the text are. By uploading a file, you can still check the keyword density in your content.

URL compare

Comparing text between URLs is effortless with our tool. Simply paste the URL you would like to get the content from (in our example we use a fantastic blog post by Sherice Jacob found here) hit “Submit URL” and our tool will automatically retrieve the contents of the page and paste it into the text area, then simply click “Compare” and let our tool highlight the difference between the URLs. This feature is especially useful for checking keyword density between pages!

Simple text compare

You can also easily compare text by copying and pasting it into each field, as demonstrated below.

Features of Originality.ai’s Text Compare Tool

Ease of use

Our text compare tool is created with the user in mind, it is designed to be accessible to everyone. Our tool allows users to upload files or enter a URL to extract text, this along with the lightweight design ensures a seamless experience. The interface is simple and straightforward, making it easy for users to compare text and detect the diff.

Multiple text file format support

Our tool provides support for a variety of different text files and microsoft word formats including pdf file, .docx, .odt, .doc, and .txt, giving users the ability to compare text from different sources with ease. This makes it a great solution for students, bloggers, and publishers who are looking for file comparison in different formats.

Protects intellectual property

Our text comparison tool helps you protect your intellectual property and helps prevent plagiarism. This tool provides an accurate comparison of texts, making it easy to ensure that your work is original and not copied from other sources. Our tool is a valuable resource for anyone looking to maintain the originality of their content.

User Data Privacy

Our text compare tool is secure and protects user data privacy. No data is ever saved to the tool, the users’ text is only scanned and pasted into the tool’s text area. This makes certain that users can use our tool with confidence, knowing their data is safe and secure.

Compatibility

Our text comparison tool is designed to work seamlessly across all size devices, ensuring maximum compatibility no matter your screen size. Whether you are using a large desktop monitor, a small laptop, a tablet or a smartphone, this tool adjusts to your screen size. This means that users can compare texts and detect the diff anywhere without the need for specialized hardware or software. This level of accessibility makes it an ideal solution for students or bloggers who value the originality of their work and need to compare text online anywhere at any time.

With the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI), it seems like businesses and individuals are pumping out content like never before. Many content creators have been quick to work this time-saving technology into their processes. However, many haven’t considered who owns AI-generated content — and the issue may be more complex than it seems.

According to the U.S. Copyright Office, with the current laws surrounding copyright in the US, you are the author and owner of an original work as soon as you create and fix it. However, if all you’re doing is giving a generative AI program like ChatGPT instructions to create a blog post, does that really count as an original work?

In this article, we’ll explore who owns AI-generated content in the US, laws regarding intellectual property rights, and where AI fits in. Then we’ll give some tips for content creators and web publishers to safeguard their ownership rights.

What Are the Laws Surrounding the Ownership of Content?

When it comes to determining the extent of AI content ownership, we first need to look at intellectual property (IP) law. Your intellectual property rights cover the kinds of intangible things you can create or develop using your mind (for example: ideas, inventions, and artistic expressions).

They typically fall into three categories: trademarks, patents, and copyrights.

  • Trademark: This gives companies the exclusive right to use marketing and branding elements, like logos and slogans, to identify themselves or their products. For example, the world-famous McDonald’s Golden Arches.
  • Patent: The owner of a patent has the right to stop others from reproducing, using, or selling their invention for a certain period of time. Amazon’s 1-click checkout patent, for example, expired in 2017.
  • Copyright: Once you create and fix an original work, like a blog post, image, or song, you own the copyright, and are therefore the author and owner. This gives you several rights, including the legal right to reproduce, display, and prepare derivative works of your original work.

While trademarks and patents may apply to other applications and inventions of AI technology, copyright is the branch of IP law most relevant to the ownership of AI-generated content. But it’s not as straightforward as you might think.

Who Owns AI-Generated Content?

So, can you copyright AI-generated content? Or does it belong to the software itself? While the laws and rules may change as this technology continues to evolve, let’s take a look at a couple of the biggest questions currently surrounding the ownership of AI content.

Can You Copyright AI-Generated Content?

According to current copyright law in the US, no, you can’t copyright AI-generated content.

The US legal system only considers something to be an “original work” if a human comes up with it on their own using some level of creativity. The keyword there is “human”. So, if AI generates a blog post or image by itself, then that output would not be protected by copyright law.

From a copyright perspective, content that has been fully generated by AI either falls under the category of:

  1. The public domain, or
  2. A derivative work of the data used to train the AI

One of the most famous examples supporting the condition of human authorship for copyright is Naruto v. Slater. In what has been dubbed the “Monkey Selfie” case, the court concluded that if a monkey takes a picture of itself, then that image isn’t eligible for copyright protection. It needs that human touch to receive this kind of legal ownership.

But just how much of that human element is necessary is up for debate. In 2022, the US Copyright Office both granted and revoked copyright protection for an AI-assisted graphic novel called “Zarya of the Dawn.” 

After giving it copyright protection, they sent a letter to author Kris Kashtanova’s attorney. The letter stated that they can only copyright the sections written and arranged by a human. This meant that the images Kashtanova created using the AI image generator Midjourney would not fall under these protections.

So, when there’s a combination of AI and human-generated elements, the human elements may receive copyright protection if they meet the requirements.

As AI technology continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see if US copyright laws change with it. For now, though, you can refer to the United States Copyright Office’s guidelines, “Copyright Registration Guidance: Works Containing Material Generated by Artificial Intelligence,” for more information.

Does ChatGPT Own the AI-Generated Content It Produces?

No. Generally speaking, ChatGPT and similar programs do not own the content you generate with them. 

While they don’t all share the exact same policies, many of the most popular generative AI programs give you at least some right to ownership of their output. Take OpenAI, for example. 

In their Terms of Use for ChatGPT, DALL·E, and their other services, OpenAI states that:

“As between you and OpenAI, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, you (a) retain your ownership rights in Input and (b) own the Output. We hereby assign to you all our right, title, and interest, if any, in and to Output.”

So, you retain the ownership rights to both your inputs and outputs when using OpenAI’s programs and services. You just can’t copyright them and give them legal protection. But does this mean that people can just steal your AI-generated content?

How Content Creators Can Protect Their AI-Generated Content

While you may own your outputs in the eyes of the AI companies, you can’t claim any kind of copyright protection without adding that human touch. So, if you’re worried about someone stealing your content, here’s some advice:

  • Edit, edit, and edit some more. If you’d like at least some of your work to be eligible for copyright protection, then make sure you’re contributing to the final product. You can keep the general framework, but try changing the tone, structure, and wording, to give it some kind of human element.
  • Use an AI content detector. When you’re going through the editing process, it can become difficult to keep track of who wrote what. If at any point you’re unsure of how much human vs. AI-generated text you have in front of you, then run it through an AI checker such as Originality.ai. It will highlight the sections that have likely been written by AI, so you know where to focus your editing efforts.
  • Keep an eye on the news. With the rapid adoption of AI technology and AI writing by many content creators and companies, the legal system is having a hard time keeping up. So, be sure to keep an eye out for the latest updates on the subject, and adjust your strategy accordingly.

Final Thoughts

It may seem like it has been around for a while at this point, but AI-generated content is still very much in its infancy, especially from a legal perspective. While things are in motion, we ultimately need to wait for more cases and court rulings to gain some clarity around AI content ownership. And with the technology possibly evolving right along with it, it will be interesting to see how things go.

In the meantime, remember the value of adding the human touch to AI-generated content. If you want your content to be eligible for any kind of copyright protection, it can make all the difference.

Jess Sawyer

Jess Sawyer is a seasoned writer and content marketing expert with a passion for crafting engaging and SEO-optimized content. With several years of experience in the digital marketing, Jess has honed her skills in creating content that not only captivates audiences but also ranks high on search engine results.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to fill out the entire form?

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Why is the English so poor for some prompts?

When making the tool we had to make each prompt as general as possible to be able to include every kind of input. Not to worry though ChatGPT is smart and will still understand the prompt.

In The Press

Originality.ai has been featured for its accurate ability to detect GPT-3, Chat GPT and GPT-4 generated content. See some of the coverage below…

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Originality.ai did a fantastic job on all three prompts, precisely detecting them as AI-written. Additionally, after I checked with actual human-written textual content, it did determine it as 100% human-generated, which is important.

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I use this tool most frequently to check for AI content personally. My most frequent use-case is checking content submitted by freelance writers we work with for AI and plagiarism.

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After extensive research and testing, we determined Originality.ai to be the most accurate technology.

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Jon Gillham, Founder of Originality.ai came up with a tool to detect whether the content is written by humans or AI tools. It’s built on such technology that can specifically detect content by ChatGPT-3 — by giving you a spam score of 0-100, with an accuracy of 94%.

Felix Rose-Collins

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ChatGPT lacks empathy and originality. It’s also recognized as AI-generated content most of the time by plagiarism and AI detectors like Originality.ai

Ashley Stahl

forbes.com

Originality.ai Do give them a shot! 

Sri Krishna

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For web publishers, Originality.ai will enable you to scan your content seamlessly, see who has checked it previously, and detect if an AI-powered tool was implored.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why is it important to check for plagiarism?

Tools for conducting a plagiarism check between two documents online are important as it helps to ensure the originality and authenticity of written work. Plagiarism undermines the value of professional and educational institutions, as well as the integrity of the authors who write articles. By checking for plagiarism, you can ensure the work that you produce is original or properly attributed to the original author. This helps prevent the distribution of copied and misrepresented information.

What is Text Comparison?

Text comparison is the process of taking two or more pieces of text and comparing them to see if there are any similarities, differences and/or plagiarism. The objective of a text comparison is to see if one of the texts has been copied or paraphrased from another text. This text compare tool for plagiarism check between two documents has been built to help you streamline that process by finding the discrepancies with ease.

How do Text Comparison Tools Work?

Text comparison tools work by analyzing and comparing the contents of two or more text documents to find similarities and differences between them. This is typically done by breaking the texts down into smaller units such as sentences or phrases, and then calculating a similarity score based on the number of identical or nearly identical units. The comparison may be based on the exact wording of the text, or it may take into account synonyms and other variations in language. The results of the comparison are usually presented in the form of a report or visual representation, highlighting the similarities and differences between the texts.

String comparison is a fundamental operation in text comparison tools that involves comparing two sequences of characters to determine if they are identical or not. This comparison can be done at the character level or at a higher level, such as the word or sentence level.

The most basic form of string comparison is the equality test, where the two strings are compared character by character and a Boolean result indicating whether they are equal or not is returned. More sophisticated string comparison algorithms use heuristics and statistical models to determine the similarity between two strings, even if they are not exactly the same. These algorithms often use techniques such as edit distance, which measures the minimum number of operations (such as insertions, deletions, and substitutions) required to transform one string into another.

Another common technique for string comparison is n-gram analysis, where the strings are divided into overlapping sequences of characters (n-grams) and the frequency of each n-gram is compared between the two strings. This allows for a more nuanced comparison that takes into account partial similarities, rather than just exact matches.

String comparison is a crucial component of text comparison tools, as it forms the basis for determining the similarities and differences between texts. The results of the string comparison can then be used to generate a report or visual representation of the similarities and differences between the texts.

What is Syntax Highlighting?

Syntax highlighting is a feature of text editors and integrated development environments (IDEs) that helps to visually distinguish different elements of a code or markup language. It does this by coloring different elements of the code, such as keywords, variables, functions, and operators, based on a predefined set of rules.

The purpose of syntax highlighting is to make the code easier to read and understand, by drawing attention to the different elements and their structure. For example, keywords may be colored in a different hue to emphasize their importance, while comments or strings may be colored differently to distinguish them from the code itself. This helps to make the code more readable, reducing the cognitive load of the reader and making it easier to identify potential syntax errors.

How Can I Conduct a Plagiarism Check between Two Documents Online?

With our tool it’s easy, just enter or upload some text, click on the button “Compare text” and the tool will automatically display the diff between the two texts.

What Are the Benefits of Using a Text Compare Tool?

Using text comparison tools is much easier, more efficient, and more reliable than proofreading a piece of text by hand. Eliminate the risk of human error by using a tool to detect and display the text difference within seconds.

What Files Can You Inspect with This Text Compare Tool?

We have support for the file extensions .pdf, .docx, .odt, .doc and .txt. You can also enter your text or copy and paste text to compare.

Will My Data Be Shared?

There is never any data saved by the tool, when you hit “Upload” we are just scanning the text and pasting it into our text area so with our text compare tool, no data ever enters our servers.

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