Australia Is Thinking About Letting AI Companies Use Creatives' Work by Default
The Albanese government is pursuing a compromise with US tech giants that could open Australian creative works to AI training, and local artists aren't happy about it.
Key points
- The Albanese government is considering giving AI companies access to Australian creative works by default.
- Senior OpenAI personnel met Labor ministers and warned that current copyright laws prevent local AI model training.
- The proposal has drawn criticism from creatives who say it trades their rights for corporate convenience.
- No final decision has been made.
What is happening with AI and copyright in Australia?
The Albanese government is weighing a plan to let AI companies use local creative works by default, part of what it describes as a compromise with US tech giants. The proposal came to light as senior OpenAI personnel, whose company built ChatGPT, met with Labor ministers. OpenAI warned those ministers that Australia's copyright laws are stopping it from training models inside the country. The Guardian first reported the meetings.
It's a significant concession to ask of a creative sector that's already anxious. Our 15 September story found Australia's biggest datacentre firm accused of using AI to write its own lobbying letters, which tells you something about the confidence tech companies bring to these conversations.
How would these changes affect creatives?
Artists, writers and musicians stand to lose the default right to withhold their work from AI training pipelines. That's the core concern: not that licensing is impossible, but that under this proposal the burden shifts. Creatives would have to opt out rather than opt in. For a solo illustrator or a mid-career novelist, knowing when and how to do that is genuinely hard.
AI companies argue the access is necessary to build competitive models locally. That may be true. It doesn't follow that the cost should fall entirely on the people who made the work.
What does this mean for everyday Australians?
For most people, the immediate effect is indirect. If AI development does shift onshore, some sectors could benefit from locally trained models. But the policy question underneath is whether Australia wants to build its AI industry on a foundation that other democracies, including the European Union, have largely refused: suspending creators' rights by default to serve large technology companies.
Common questions
Will Australian creatives lose control of their work?
Under the reported proposal, yes, as a starting position. An opt-out model means your work is available unless you act. The government would need to build strong, accessible safeguards for that to be anything other than a transfer of rights from individuals to corporations.
Why does OpenAI want these changes?
OpenAI told Labor ministers that existing copyright restrictions prevent it from training AI models in Australia. The company sees legal reform as a precondition for meaningful local development and deployment. What it hasn't said publicly is what it would offer in return.
