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First AI Image-Training Copyright Jury Trial Delayed to 2027
A court case about whether AI companies can train image generators on artists’ work has been delayed.
The trial was supposed to begin on 8 September.
It is now scheduled for 5 April 2027.
Three artists started the lawsuit in 2023, and more plaintiffs have since joined.
The artists say their work was copied into a huge image database called LAION.
They argue that using those images to build commercial AI tools broke copyright law.
The case includes Stability AI, Midjourney, DeviantArt and Runway AI.
Because the trial is delayed, people will have to wait longer for a jury’s view on the issue.
Meanwhile, AI image tools and the market around them continue to develop.
The Andersen v. Stability AI jury trial has been rescheduled from 8 September to 5 April 2027.
The case was filed by visual artists Sarah Andersen, Karla Ortiz and Kelly McKernan in January 2023.
The lawsuit now includes additional plaintiffs and names Stability AI, Midjourney, DeviantArt and Runway AI as defendants.
The artists argue that using their work in the LAION dataset to train commercial AI systems infringed copyright.
The delay leaves the legal status of AI image training unresolved while the industry continues to grow.
- Who
- Visual artists Sarah Andersen, Karla Ortiz and Kelly McKernan, additional plaintiffs, and defendants Stability AI, Midjourney, DeviantArt and Runway AI.
- What
- A US jury trial examining whether training AI image generators on copyrighted work constitutes infringement has been delayed.
- Where
- The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of California.
- When
- The trial was moved from 8 September to 5 April 2027; the lawsuit was filed in January 2023.
- Why
- The artists argue that their work was included in the LAION dataset and used to train commercial AI systems without proper authorization.
Artists and copyright concerns
AI developers and continued industry activity
Whether training is infringement
Artists and copyright concerns
The artists argue that including their work in LAION and using it to train commercial AI systems was copyright infringement.
AI developers and continued industry activity
The article does not state the defendants’ specific legal response, but identifies Stability AI, Midjourney, DeviantArt and Runway AI as defendants in the case.
Effect of the delay
Artists and copyright concerns
Artists who say AI tools are costing them work must wait longer for a judgment on whether those losses have a legal remedy.
AI developers and continued industry activity
AI image generation continues to grow, and companies continue building on existing practices while the legal question remains unresolved.
Key facts
- Original trial date
- 8 September
- New trial date
- 5 April 2027
- Delay
- Approximately seven months
- Case
- Andersen v. Stability AI
- Dataset at issue
- LAION, described as containing around five billion images scraped from the internet
- Plaintiffs
- Sarah Andersen, Karla Ortiz, Kelly McKernan and additional plaintiffs
- Defendants
- Stability AI, Midjourney, DeviantArt and Runway AI
Sources
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