WUR Library

Generative AI

Generative AI (GenAI) tools can generate large amounts of text or images in an instant. But from the point of view of copyright law, there are important consequences you should take into consideration when using GenAI.

The unchanged text output of generative AI (GenAI) systems, such as ChatGPT, are not protected by copyright. This is because these outputs do not have or do not have enough of a creative human element in their creation. This means neither the model’s creator nor the prompt’s writer can claim copyright on it. This also means that anyone with whom you share this output is free to use, copy, modify and share this with others, unless subject to contractual limitations.

If you substantially alter the model’s output by adding creative human input to the AI system’s output, this final work can be subjected to copyright. For example, if you use the text output as inspiration for a publication, that publication will be protected by copyright.

Note: Be careful what kind of information you input into GenAI systems, as these prompts can usually be re-used by the tool for other purposes. For this reason, do not use personal data or company-sensitive information.

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Can a text generating AI system commit copyright infringement?


A generative AI (GenAI) text system may produce output that violates copyright by being too similar to an existing work because the GenAI’s training data contained copyrighted works. If you use any text from a GenAI system in your work, you as author are responsible to ensure that it does not violate any confidentiality, licensing or copyright laws.

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How should I cite usage of text-generating AI systems?


Publishers and journals have different rules for using generative AI (GenAI) text systems. Some do not allow GenAI to be used in their publications, while others require clear disclosure of use. Always check what is allowed for a given publication. However, the following recommendations are a good baseline to use when publishing an article for which GenAI has been used:

  • When AI is used to edit or to adjust a text, use of the GenAI text system must be disclosed in an authorship statement or CRediT statement.
  • A GenAI system cannot be the (co-)author of a publication, as it cannot take on all the responsibilities that come with being the author of a work.
  • When used as a data analysis tool, AI is considered part of the methods and should be discussed in that part of the publication. Text generated by a GenAI system cannot usually be cited as a source of information in itself due to lack of reproductivity and traceability as for example the same prompt will output a different result at a later time.
  • The authors of a publication are always responsible for the publication’s accuracy, completeness and coherence.


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    Who has copyright on an image created by a Generative AI model (GenAI)?


    The unchanged output of GenAI systems, such as Dall-E, are not protected by copyright, as they do not have any or enough creative human element in their creation. This means neither the system’s creator nor the prompt’s writer can claim copyright on the image. This also means that anyone with whom you share this image is free to use, copy, modify and share this with others, unless subject to contractual limitations.

    Note: Be careful what kind of information you input into GenAI systems, as these prompts can usually be re-used by the tool for other purposes. For this reason, do not use personal data or company-sensitive information.
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    Can an image created by Generative AI (GenAI) commit copyright infringement?


    A generative AI (GenAI) system may produce output that violates copyright by being too similar to an existing work because the GenAI’s training data contained copyrighted works. This is particularly relevant for images, as the GenAI models for images can easily create similar materials.

    As it is virtually impossible to guarantee that the a GenAI’s output doesn’t infringe on other work, we strongly discourage using GenAI-generated images in any official capacity.
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    What data can I use to train an AI system at the WUR?


    As a research institute and university, we are allowed to mine text & data sources even if they are protected by copyright or explicitly prohibited from datamining by commercial institutions. This right does have some restrictions so always check with us or your legal department if these apply to your situation. In addition, the creators of certain AI systems or models are required to show the training data used to train their systems. We recommend that you keep track of the training data you use for your AI system or model, so that the AI system or model meets the legal and scientific prerequisites and can be released publicly in the future.

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    Do I need to disclose what material was used for training the AI system?


    Yes, you may be required to share what training data was used for to train your AI system under EU law when you release/share your system. Considering this, it is important to keep track of the data used to train your AI system or model.
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    Last updated on 13/06/2024.