tech
ChatGPT starts blocking direct requests to copy an author's style
New behavior capturing a writer’s “broad qualities” could have legal implications.
TL;DR
- ChatGPT now refuses to generate text that directly mimics the style of famous authors.
- The AI instead offers to capture the "broad qualities" of an author while remaining distinct.
- This behavior shift is observed for both living and deceased authors.
- The change may be legally significant, potentially mitigating claims of copyright infringement and substantial similarity to original works.
- US copyright law protects expression, not intangible style, but AI imitation could infringe if "substantially similar."
- Other LLMs like Google's Gemini still comply with style-copying requests, while Perplexity AI and ChatGPT refuse.
- Anthropic's Claude and Microsoft's Copilot comply with qualifications, suggesting awareness of the issue.
- The Authors Guild advises against using generative AI to mimic authors' unique styles in ways that harm their work's value or attempt to profit.