Washington, D.C. – TechNet, the national, bipartisan network of innovation economy CEOs and senior executives, submitted comments on artificial intelligence and copyright law to the U.S. Copyright Office. The following can be attributed to TechNet President and CEO Linda Moore:

“Our robust comments highlight why it’s critically important to have the right policies in place that address AI’s risks while ensuring America continues to lead the way in its responsible development and deployment. While we’ve been using AI safely and responsibly for decades to navigate traffic, search the internet, undertake research, and discover new movies and music, we must address its concerns head-on to make the most of its benefits.

“Policymakers must prioritize the preservation of core copyright laws that offer technology-neutral safeguards for legitimate rightsholders and innovators, which will enhance the competitiveness of American AI and creative industries on the global stage.

“The creation of training datasets is a critical element of AI development. However, broad disclosure of training data would undermine the ability of American companies to compete with our foreign adversaries. Forcing AI companies to disclose this information would lessen the incentive to invest in new ways to compile, select, curate, and filter training data and would require disclosure of these valuable trade secrets to foreign AI competitors, who are not subject to the same requirements.

“In addition, we encourage the Copyright Office to utilize time-tested principles of authorship when addressing difficult questions relating to works created through a combination of human ingenuity and AI tools. We’re also concerned that a statutory licensing regime would ultimately fail to serve copyright’s overall purpose of incentivizing the creation of new works.

“We look forward to working with the Copyright Office to address policy issues raised by AI, and we support their continued efforts to protect existing law and put in place the proper risk-based safeguards that will allow the U.S. to win the next era of innovation.”

Read the full comments here.

Additional background on TechNet’s recent actions and leadership on AI policy:

  • TechNet issued a statement on President Biden’s Executive Order on artificial intelligence.
  • Last week, TechNet released a comprehensive federal AI policy framework, which included recommendations for protecting the personal information of consumers, promoting innovation and our global competitiveness, identifying unintended bias and discrimination, and investing in upskilling and workforce training programs.
  • TechNet launched “AI For America,” a $25 million public affairs initiative to promote AI’s current and future benefits and educate and inform Americans on how AI is already improving their lives, growing our economy, and keeping us safe.
  • John Doerr, TechNet co-founder and Executive Council member and Chairman of Kleiner Perkins, and Steve Case, TechNet Executive Council member and Chairman and CEO of Revolution, recently participated in a Senate AI Insight Forum focused on innovation and global competitiveness.
  • TechNet hosted a marquee event on Capitol Hill that brought together over 250 interested parties and 25 expert speakers to discuss the positive impact AI is having and will have on all Americans from every walk of life. Congressman Jay Obernolte (R-CA), Google DeepMind Senior Research Director Douglas Eck, Getaround Founder and CEO Sam Zaid, Nasdaq Chief Technology Officer/Chief Information Officer Brad Peterson, and other industry leaders participated. You can watch the event here.
  • TechNet submitted comments to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) urging them to enforce their existing authority on “fraudulent misrepresentation” and bar deliberately misleading campaign communications generated with AI.
  • TechNet submitted comments to the Office of Science and Technology Policy as they were developing their National AI Strategy.
  • TechNet submitted comments to the Office of Science and Technology Policy on automated systems in the workplace.
  • TechNet submitted comments to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on AI system accountability measures and policies.