Trump Backs OpenAI Against The New York Times on Fair Use

Key Takeaways

1The Trump administration filed a statement of interest in favor of OpenAI in the New York Times lawsuit

2American lawyers defend the legality of training AI on copyrighted works under fair use

3Recent rulings and licensing agreements are shaping the industry, including a $1.5 billion settlement with Anthropic

4The New York Times is seeking billions of dollars from OpenAI and Microsoft

Why it matters : This federal support comes as the AI sector faces a surge in litigation and seeks to find a balance between litigation and commercial agreements.

The Trump administration has filed a statement of interest in support of OpenAI in the lawsuit brought by the New York Times. The government defends the legality of training on copyrighted works under the fair use doctrine, while recent rulings and commercial licenses shape the industry.

Rulings and Licenses Already Define AI Training

In 2025, a judge ruled that Anthropic could train its models on legally purchased books, while also determining that liability for piracy could still exist. This decision led to a $1.5 billion settlement with authors. Meanwhile, many media outlets have signed licensing agreements with OpenAI, including The Associated Press, Axel Springer, and Vox Media. The New York Times also reached an agreement with Amazon in 2025, allowing its articles and recipes to be used in Amazon's generative AI tools.

The Federal Statement Advocates for Fair Use Compatible with Progress

The statement of interest filed by the Trump administration argues that using protected texts to train AI models is legal. American lawyers assert that the New York Times is seeking to restrict the fair use doctrine to exclude the training of OpenAI's LLMs, which would be incompatible with fundamental copyright principles and detrimental to the advancement of useful sciences and arts. They argue that LLMs are already helping researchers achieve major breakthroughs, and that limiting their development based on a misunderstanding of fair use would hinder creative and scientific progress, while also obstructing American prosperity and economic mobility. They contend that fair use analysis depends on the specific facts and uses of each case, and it would be legally incorrect to impose a liability that would generally prohibit training without a license. They finally assert that the training of LLMs is compatible with the constitutional goal of creative progress.

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The NYT vs. OpenAI and Microsoft Case Targets Billions

In December 2023, the New York Times filed a copyright action against OpenAI, accusing the company of illegally training its systems on its articles. The media outlet is seeking "billions of dollars" in damages from both Microsoft and OpenAI. This week, the Trump administration intervened by filing a statement of interest in support of OpenAI.

Political Background and Increasing Litigation

The Trump administration has frequently utilized statements of interest in private litigation, with one official describing them as "incredibly" effective in advancing its political objectives. It had previously argued that AI training should fall under fair use in its National AI Legislative Framework. Donald Trump is also engaged in a defamation lawsuit against the New York Times. More broadly, conflicts over copyright between media and AI labs have multiplied, with lawsuits filed by the Center for Investigative Reporting, the Chicago Tribune, and the New York Daily News. The New York Times case could set a precedent for other media facing AI training on their content.