The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post have taken legal action against Perplexity AI, accusing the Silicon Valley startup of massive copyright and trademark violations. Filed in a federal court in New York on Monday, the lawsuit alleges that Perplexity AI has illegally copied and reproduced content from these prestigious publications to power its AI-driven \"answer engine.\"
Perplexity AI, known for its minimalist and conversational interface, is touted as a potential disruptor to giants like Google. Unlike traditional search engines, Perplexity provides up-to-date answers that include links to source materials, allowing users to verify information without needing to click through to the original websites. However, the Wall Street Journal and New York Post argue that this model constitutes \"massive freeriding\" on their protected content, diverting both readers and revenue away from the publishers.
\"Unlike the business model of a traditional internet search engine, Perplexity's business model does not drive business toward content creators. To the contrary, it usurps content creators' monetization opportunities for itself,\" the lawsuit states.
Backed by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and AI powerhouse Nvidia, Perplexity AI has yet to respond to the allegations. The plaintiffs are seeking injunctive relief, statutory damages of up to $150,000 per infringement, and the destruction of any databases containing their copyrighted works.
This legal move follows similar actions by The New York Times, which previously sent a cease and desist letter to Perplexity as a precursor to a potential lawsuit. Last year, The New York Times also sued OpenAI over similar allegations that ChatGPT-maker was using copyrighted material without authorization to train its AI models. Meanwhile, News Corp, the parent company of The Wall Street Journal and New York Post, has secured a content agreement with OpenAI, a partnership that Perplexity AI, according to the lawsuit, has ignored despite requests.
The case highlights the growing tensions between content creators and AI-driven platforms, raising important questions about the future of content monetization and intellectual property in the age of artificial intelligence.
Reference(s):
WSJ, New York Post sue Perplexity AI for copyright infringement
cgtn.com
