The lawsuit cited several instances in which OpenAI and Microsoft chatbots gave users near-verbatim excerpts of NYT articles, and it claimed that such infringements threaten journalism by reducing readers’ need to visit its website – reducing traffic and potentially cutting into revenue. It also said the defendants’ chatbots make it harder for readers to distinguish fact from fiction, including when ChatGPT falsely attributes information to the newspaper.
OpenAI and Microsoft claim that using copyrighted works to train AI products amounts to “fair use,” a legal doctrine governing the unlicensed use of copyrighted material.
For now, the merits of the lawsuit are TBD. No winner or loser has been declared; however, underlying discovery rulings by a federal magistrate are making waves. In a decision rendered in early December 2025, a federal magistrate judge ordered OpenAI to produce 20 million anonymized chat logs from ChatGPT users in the litigation.
The Times argues that the logs are necessary to determine whether ChatGPT reproduced copyrighted content. OpenAI counters that turning over the logs would disclose confidential user information.
The presiding magistrate judge concluded that 20 million logs maintained by OpenAI were relevant, and that handing them over would not risk violating users’ privacy; in fact, the magistrate ordered OpenAI to produce the logs after removing users’ identifying information. OpenAI adamantly asserts that the demand for the chat logs violates well-settled privacy protections and disregards common data security protocols; thus, they are appealing the magistrate’s decision.
Privacy and Risk Implications
While these issues play out in this litigation (and others to come), generative AI users should consider whether their otherwise private interactions with chatbots are earnestly private – even when they are deleted and even when anonymized.
Do you reveal personal details to your AI assistant? How about company details? Consult the privacy policy of the AI tools you use, and understand how your data is stored, accessed, and protected. Even if you are not involved in a lawsuit or criminal investigation, records of your digital conversations might be preserved and could be discovered in a court of law.
For now, uncertainty prevails. Your data could be at risk, and the conversations you have with your favorite AI tool – from silly to meaningful – may extend beyond the confines of your phone or computer.
