To learn how to behave, the current revolutionary generation of AIs must be trained on vast quantities of published images, written works, and sounds, many of which fall within the core subject matter of copyright law. To some, the use of copyrighted works as training sets for AI is merely a transitory and non-consumptive use that does not materially interfere with owners' content or copyrights protecting it. Companies that use such content to train their AI engine often believe such usage should be considered "fair use" under United States law (sometimes known as "fair dealing" in other countries). By contrast, many copyright owners, as well as their supporters, consider the incorporation of copyrighted works into training sets for AI to constitute misappropriation of owners' intellectual property, and, thus, decidedly not fair use under the law. This debate is vital to the future trajectory of AI and its applications. In this article, we analyze the arguments in favor of, and against, viewing the use of copyrighted works in training sets for AI as fair use. We call this form of fair use "fair training". We identify both strong and spurious arguments on both sides of this debate. In addition, we attempt to take a broader perspective, weighing the societal costs (e.g., replacement of certain forms of human employment) and benefits (e.g., the possibility of novel AI-based approaches to global issues such as environmental disruption) of allowing AI to make easy use of copyrighted works as training sets to facilitate the development, improvement, adoption, and diffusion of AI. Finally, we suggest that the debate over AI and copyrighted works may be a tempest in a teapot when placed in the wider context of massive societal challenges such as poverty, equality, climate change, and loss of biodiversity, to which AI may be part of the solution.

翻译：为了学习如何行为，当前革命性一代人工智能必须使用大量已出版的图像、文字作品和声音进行训练，其中许多属于版权法的核心客体。对一些人而言，将受版权保护的作品用作AI训练集，仅是过渡性且非消耗性的使用，并未实质性干扰创作者的内容或保护其内容的版权。使用此类内容训练AI引擎的公司通常认为，根据美国法律，这种使用应被视为“合理使用”（其他国家有时称为“公平交易”）。相反，许多版权所有者及其支持者认为，将受版权保护的作品纳入AI训练集构成对所有者知识产权的侵占，因此根据法律绝不属于合理使用。这一争论对AI及其应用的未来轨迹至关重要。本文中，我们分析了支持与反对将受版权保护作品用于AI训练集视为合理使用的论点。我们将这种形式的合理使用称为“公平训练”。我们识别出争论双方中既有有力也有站不住脚的论点。此外，我们试图采取更广阔的视角，权衡允许AI便捷使用受版权保护作品作为训练集以促进AI开发、改进、采用与扩散的社会成本（例如替代某些形式的人类就业）与收益（例如基于AI的新方法应对环境破坏等全球问题的可能性）。最后，我们建议，置于更宏大的社会挑战（如贫困、不平等、气候变化和生物多样性丧失，而AI可能是解决方案的一部分）背景下，关于AI与受版权保护作品的争论可能只是茶杯里的风暴。