A U.S. District Judge has ordered Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to be deposed in a lawsuit involving the use of copyrighted works to train Meta’s Generative AI. The suit was initiated by authors Ta-Nehisi Coates, Sarah Silverman, Richard Kadrey, and Christopher Golden. The authors allege that Meta improperly used their works to develop AI software without consent, credit, or compensation.
Meta denies these allegations, maintaining they did not access the authors’ works for their LLaMA system. Judge Thomas Hixson noted, “Plaintiffs have made an evidentiary showing that Zuckerberg is the chief decision maker and policy setter for Meta’s Generative AI branch and the development of the large language models at issue in this action.”
Meta’s legal team attempted to suggest that other executives were more suitable for deposition. However, Judge Hixson dismissed this, stating, “Given this factual showing, the Court is not going to require Plaintiffs to exhaust other forms of discovery before they depose Zuckerberg.
They’ve made a solid case that this deposition is worth taking.”
A hearing on discovery in the case took place in San Francisco, potentially expediting Zuckerberg’s deposition. The exact time and date for his deposition have yet to be scheduled.
Zuckerberg deposition ordered in AI dispute
This legal battle exemplifies the complex terrain of AI development and its implications for intellectual property rights. It comes amidst broader societal discussions about AI, following the advent of technologies like ChatGPT. In a separate hearing, Judge Vince Chhabria admonished the authors’ legal team, led by Joseph Saveri, for failing to adequately represent its clients.
Chhabria said, “You and your team have barely been litigating the case, that’s obvious. I will not certify a class represented by this legal team.”
The judge urged the plaintiffs’ attorneys to bring in other law firms with the resources to properly litigate the case. The discovery process has been dragging on, largely due to the plaintiffs’ attorneys’ failure to raise discovery disputes in a timely manner.
Meta argues that its copying of the books is permitted by copyright law’s fair use exception. The case is ongoing, and the outcome could have significant implications for the use of copyrighted material in AI training.
