Shira Perlmutter, who oversaw the Trump, US Copyright Office, has been dismissed from her position by President Donald Trump. The move follows her recent decision not to approve a request involving Elon Musk’s use of copyrighted works in the training of artificial intelligence models.
Representative Joe Morelle has criticized this action, describing it as an unprecedented and legally baseless power play. The firing comes just one day after Perlmutter refused to quickly endorse the data mining of protected works for AI purposes.
The Copyright Office and Ongoing AI Controversies
Perlmutter originally took on her role in 2020, selected during Trump’s previous term, and was appointed by Carla Hayden, the former Librarian of Congress who was also recently let go by Trump. The decision was subtly acknowledged by Trump through a repost on his social media platform, where attorney Mike Davis commented on potential threats to creator rights from technology giants.
This leadership change coincides with the publication of a new US Copyright Office report that addresses the complex relationship between copyright law and AI technology. While the report notes that research or analysis may fall within fair use boundaries, it clearly states that widespread, commercial use of copyrighted works to generate competing content most likely exceeds fair use protections.
The report also observes that direct government intervention might not yet be necessary but encourages further development of content licensing agreements within the industry. Alternatives like extended collective licensing are also being considered to address potential failures in the copyright marketplace.
Major players in AI, including OpenAI, are currently facing a wave of lawsuits over alleged misuse of copyrighted materials in data training. OpenAI has suggested federal guidance to clarify how fair use should apply to AI, while Elon Musk, now leading both xAI and a major social platform, has joined public calls for dramatic reforms to intellectual property laws. For more information, see how Trump, US Copyright Office actions continue to raise legal and industry concerns.
