Seattle Times and Newsday join mounting legal challenge against OpenAI and Microsoft over AI training

The Seattle Times and Newsday have filed a lawsuit alleging that OpenAI and Microsoft improperly used their reporting to train generative AI systems, marking the latest chapter in a growing legal battle over AI training practices in the news industry.

The core complaint#

The publications characterize generative AI as fundamentally predatory, describing it in their lawsuit as operating like "a snake eating its own tail." They contend that tools like ChatGPT and CoPilot could ultimately undermine the news organizations whose original work powers them — rendering the journalism industry "broken beyond repair."

The legal filing argues that while these AI products present themselves as content creators, they actually function as aggressive content consumers that harvest human-written material, then regurgitate approximations of that same work for commercial gain.

Part of a larger trend#

The suit builds on precedent set by The New York Times, which sued OpenAI and Microsoft in 2023 on copyright grounds. Since then, additional publications have pursued similar legal action as that foundational case progresses through the courts.

What makes the Seattle Times' position noteworthy is the relationship dynamic: Microsoft and OpenAI have previously supported some of the newspaper's journalism initiatives and fellowship programs — a fact that underscores the tension between industry partnerships and intellectual property concerns.

Response from the defendants#

A Microsoft representative expressed surprise at the lawsuit while signaling openness to negotiation, telling GeekWire the company remains willing to "explore solutions to this type of dispute."