ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND COPYRIGHT LAW: RETHINKING AUTHORSHIP IN THE AGE OF GENERATIVE AI

AUTHOR – SAMIKSHA, STUDENT AT CHRIST (DEEMED TO BE UNIVERSITY), BANGALORE

BEST CITATION – SAMIKSHA, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND COPYRIGHT LAW: RETHINKING AUTHORSHIP IN THE AGE OF GENERATIVE AI, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (2) OF 2026, PG. 492-506, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

ABSTRACT

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly transformed the creative landscape by enabling machines to generate complex outputs such as text, images, music, and software code. Modern generative AI systems are capable of producing content that closely resembles human creativity, raising important legal questions regarding authorship and ownership of such works. Traditional copyright law was developed on the assumption that creative expression originates from human intellectual effort. However, the increasing capability of AI systems to autonomously generate creative content challenges this foundational principle and exposes gaps within existing legal frameworks. This research examines the legal uncertainty surrounding the ownership of AI-generated works and evaluates whether current copyright laws are capable of addressing these emerging technological developments. The study adopts a doctrinal and analytical legal research methodology, relying on statutory provisions, judicial decisions, academic literature, and policy discussions relating to intellectual property and artificial intelligence. It explores the distinction between AI-assisted works and fully AI-generated works and analyzes the potential claimants to ownership, including AI developers, users, and technology companies. The research also undertakes a comparative analysis of legal approaches in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia in order to understand how different jurisdictions address the issue of authorship in the context of AI-generated creativity. The study further discusses broader policy concerns such as innovation incentives, accountability, fair use of training data, and the potential economic impact on human creators. The research concludes that existing copyright frameworks remain largely human-centric and therefore struggle to address works produced autonomously by artificial intelligence. It suggests that a balanced legal framework recognizing AI-assisted works while maintaining human authorship as the central requirement of copyright protection may provide a practical solution for addressing the legal challenges posed by AI-generated creativity.

Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, AI-Generated Works, Copyright Law, Authorship, Intellectual Property, Generative AI, Ownership.