Case 1:22-cv-01564-BAH Document 24 Filed 08/18/23 Page 1 of 15
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
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STEVEN THALER,
SHIRA PERLMUTTER, Register of Copyrights and Director of the United States Copyright Office, et al.
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Civil Action No. 22-1564 (BAH)
Judge Beryl A. Howell |
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Plaintiff Stephen Thaler owns a computer system he calls the “Creativity Machine,” which he claims generated a piece of visual art of its own accord. He sought to register the work for a copyright, listing the computer system as the author and explaining that the copyright should transfer to him as the owner of the machine. The Copyright Office denied the application on the grounds that the work lacked human authorship, a prerequisite for a valid copyright to issue, in the view of the Register of Copyrights. Plaintiff challenged that denial, culminating in this lawsuit against the United States Copyright Office and Shira Perlmutter, in her official capacity as the Register of Copyrights and the Director of the United States Copyright Office (“defendants”). Both parties have now moved for summary judgment, which motions present the sole issue of whether a work generated entirely by an artificial system absent human involvement should be eligible for copyright. See Pl.’s Mot. Summ. J. (Pl.’s Mot.”), ECF No. 16; Defs.’ Cross-Mot. Summ. J. (“Defs.’ Mot.”), ECF No. 17. For the reasons explained below, defendants are correct that human authorship is an essential part of a valid copyright claim, and
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