Artificial Intelligence as (Non-)Author: Legal and Ethical Aspects of Generative Artificial Intelligence

Abstract

The dynamic development of generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems fundamentally challenges the traditional understanding of originality and authorship in the context of copyright law. This article focuses on analysing the legal nature of outputs created by generative AI from the perspective of the applicable legal framework, which strictly presupposes and requires the existence of a human author and ties the emergence of authorship to a person’s creative intellectual contribution. However, since AI is not a legal subject and is incapable of autonomous creative activity in the legal sense, the question arises of how to classify outputs in copyright terms when the human contribution is minimal or entirely absent. The article therefore highlights differing concepts of (non-)authorship in the case of programmers of AI, users of AI, or the AI itself, as well as comparative approaches adopted in selected legal systems. The analysis also includes the ethical and societal implications of the mass use of AI in creative processes, particularly the impact of generative AI on the position of traditional authors. Finally, proposals de lege ferenda are presented, reflecting the need to adapt copyright law to new technological challenges while maintaining a balance between promoting creativity and protecting authors’ rights.