OpenAI, Anthropic push Australia for ‘conditional’ AI training approval

Top AI executives OpenAI and Anthropic have pushed back against Australia’s AI training rules while urging the authorities to rethink their approach.

According to the tech giants, the rethinking ban of AI training rules would let them use the country’s creative content for training their models. Restricted exemptions from AI rules not only attract more investment but also protect artists’ rights.

The call from tech companies comes as governments worldwide are struggling to balance AI regulation with attracting investments anticipated to reach hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the decade.

Anthropic and OpenAI issued statements in submissions to a parliamentary inquiry in September on laws governing AI. Claude owner in its submission not only acknowledged the ban but also voiced support for conditional approval.

"As an alternative, ​we believe that the government could permit AI model training through a narrow form of conditional ‌approval," ⁠it added.

If Australia required "investment or other conditions designed to support the future of Australian creators and cultural endeavours ... we are open to considering those conditions," it said.

OpenAI OpenAI called for "a balanced copyright framework that allows models to learn from publicly available information" ​while offering rightsholders ​opportunities to collaborate.

These submissions intensify pressure on the government as it balances the demands of AI developers against creators, authors, and publishers.

Creators strongly oppose allowing commercial AI models to be trained on their work without explicit consent or compensation. The Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence is scheduled to release its report in November.

Earlier, Australia decided to implement comprehensive rules on AI training and data centers, taking effect from next year. But it has ruled out an exemption to copyright laws, preventing the US companies from undertaking training.