The UK House of Lords passes amendment requiring AI companies to disclose copyrighted material used in training, rejecting government policy allowing unauthorized use

In the wake of growing concerns that AI developers are using copyrighted content to train their AI models, the UK government has proposed allowing companies to use content to train AI models without permission, unless rights holders opt out. This proposal has been met with opposition from companies and artists, and the House of Lords , the UK parliament's upper house, has passed an amendment to the Data Bill opposing the government's proposal.

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AI developers use a variety of content from the internet and elsewhere to train their AI models, including a lot of copyrighted work, sparking a backlash from artists, publishers, and media companies.

Therefore, in December 2024, the UK government proposed a new amendment to copyright law to balance the rights of content creators with the growth of AI development. Under the UK government's proposal, content rights holders would be able to license training by AI development companies and receive compensation for the training. It would also require that content not be used to train AI models if the rights holder opts out.

However, the proposal has also been criticized because it would allow the unauthorized use of content that is not explicitly rejected. In addition, AI development companies such as OpenAI and Google have also opposed the bill, citing the lack of effectiveness and the possibility that it would hinder AI development.

OpenAI and Google reject UK government proposal to allow AI companies to use content to train AI models without permission unless rights holders opt out - GIGAZINE

AI developers are not the only ones opposed to the UK government's proposals; artists and advocates for the creative industries are also voicing their criticism. Bevan Kidron , a member of the House of Lords and film director, criticized the UK government's proposals, saying, 'My point to MPs is, if you're part of a government that's committed to growth, why are you trying to undermine the creative industries that bring £126 billion to the UK economy and give away the property rights of 2.4 million people who work in those industries for free? The creative industries touch every constituency, every region and every country.'

Kidron also proposed amendments to the Data Bill that would require AI companies to disclose the content they use to train their AI models, as well as the names of crawlers used to scrape copyrighted data.

'Tech companies have come in with their web crawlers, pulled out all this copyrighted content, and said, 'Oh, I don't know what content was used for training.'' Kidron said of his proposed amendment. 'My amendment requires companies to be transparent and explain when and where they used content. It's about making copyright law fit for the age of AI.'

Artists including Paul McCartney, Dua Lipa and Elton John, as well as numerous media companies, music publishers and arts organisations, have signed an open letter in support of Kidron's proposed amendment.

25.05.09-Press-Release-and-Letter-to-the-PM-Creative-titans-and-industry-leaders-urge-the-Prime-Minister-to-support-UK-creativity-and-economic-growth-by-enforcing-copyright-law-Final-Updated.pdf
(PDF file) https://beeban.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/25.05.09-Press-Release-and-Letter-to-the-PM-Creative-titans-and-industry-leaders-urge-the-Prime-Minister-to-support-UK-creativity-and-economic-growth-by-enforcing-copyright-law-Final-Updated.pdf

Paul McCartney and Dua Lipa call on the UK to pass AI copyright transparency law | The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/news/666379/paul-mccartney-dua-lipa-uk-ai-copyright-amendment-letter

The House of Lords then overwhelmingly passed Kidron's amendment, with 272 votes in favour and 125 against. The amendment will now go to the House of Commons for debate.

'I want to reject the idea that those who oppose the government's plans are anti-technology. Creators do not deny the creative and economic value of AI, but we reject the argument that we should be able to build AI for free using our work and then have to rent it back from those who stole it,' Kidron said. 'Followers, this is an attack on the UK economy. This is a massive attack on a sector that is worth £120 billion to the UK, an industry that is at the heart of our industrial strategy and of huge cultural importance.'