AI Progress Hosts Panel On The Future Of AI, Role of Copyright Law In U.S. Competitiveness
Washington, D.C. (April 2, 2025) — AI Progress hosted a panel discussion on Capitol Hill today covering the future of artificial intelligence and the importance of copyright law in fueling that innovation. The panel, AI Progress’s first, was moderated by AI Progress Advisor, Anna Chauvet, Partner and Copyright Practice Leader at Finnegan. The panel featured:
- Jordan Gimbel – Associate General Counsel, Open Innovation, Microsoft
- Doug Eck – Senior Research Director, Google DeepMind
“U.S. copyright law — particularly the doctrine of fair use — has long been a pillar of innovation, allowing researchers, entrepreneurs and developers to build upon existing knowledge to create groundbreaking technologies,” said Chauvet in her opening remarks. “It is this enduring legal foundation that has enabled American AI leaders to build the systems that are already helping to solve the nation’s most pressing challenges.”
The panel discussed how fair use fuels AI-driven advancements in critical sectors, as it permits the use of copyrighted works without permission where the secondary use is for a new purpose and does not serve as a market substitute for the originals. In addition, the panel addressed the potential risks of restrictive copyright policies hindering AI innovation, why data access is essential for building accurate AI systems and how changes to existing U.S. copyright law could jeopardize U.S. leadership in AI.
“Performing data analysis of works protected by copyright is aligned with copyright’s purpose and function and comports with the fair use doctrine. Copyright and fair use are essential underpinnings of American industries, and crucial for AI to thrive,” said Gimbel. “As competition in AI increases globally, maintaining this future-looking approach is central to continued U.S. leadership.”
“Artificial intelligence is already creating incredible breakthroughs that benefit everyone,” said Eck. “AI and large language models have the potential to help us solve our most challenging problems, but we’ll only realize AI’s full potential with continued access to a wide range of data.”
AI is a foundational technology with the power to drive scientific discovery, solve societal challenges and strengthen national security. The United States’ leadership in AI development is supported by existing U.S. copyright law and its fair use doctrine, which allows models to learn from robust and varied data while protecting intellectual property rights. This framework fosters innovation, strengthens American competitiveness and supports the development of accurate AI tools that are capable of addressing societal challenges. As global competitors challenge America’s AI leadership, AI Progress is committed to ensuring access to training data, which is essential for maintaining America’s competitive edge and setting global standards for AI development and deployment.
The coalition recently submitted comments to the U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy highlighting the existing flexibility within United States copyright law to address emerging technologies, including the rise of AI and the importance of ensuring that U.S. policy continues to foster innovation, economic prosperity and global AI leadership. The full RFI submitted by AI Progress is available here.
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About AI Progress
AI Progress is a 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to the responsible development of AI tools to benefit sectors such as education, healthcare, transportation, public safety and social services. The coalition emphasizes existing U.S. copyright law’s essential role in fostering innovation, protecting intellectual property rights and securing U.S. competitiveness in AI innovation. Members include Amazon, Anthropic, Cohere, Google, Meta, Midjourney, Microsoft and OpenAI.
