Anthropic settles $1.5 billion copyright case with authors
The deal highlights growing legal risks for AI firms, with Anthropic agreeing to destroy datasets built from allegedly pirated material.
The AI startup, Anthropic, has agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle a copyright lawsuit accusing the company of using pirated books to train its Claude AI chatbot.
The proposed deal, one of the largest of its kind, comes after a group of authors claimed the startup deliberately downloaded unlicensed copies of around 500,000 works.
According to reports, Anthropic will pay about $3,000 per book and add interest while agreeing to destroy datasets containing the material. A California judge will review the settlement terms on 8 September before finalising them.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs described the outcome as a landmark, warning that using pirated websites for AI training is unlawful.
The case reflects mounting legal pressure on the AI industry, with companies such as OpenAI and Microsoft also facing copyright disputes. The settlement followed a June ruling in which a judge said using the books to train Claude was ‘transformative’ and qualified as fair use.
Anthropic said the deal resolves legacy claims while affirming its commitment to safe AI development.
Despite the legal challenges, Anthropic continues to grow rapidly. Earlier in August, the company secured $13 billion in funding for a valuation of $183 billion, underlining its rise as one of the fastest-growing players in the global technology sector.
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