Generative and AI Authored Artworks and Copyright Law

Abstract

This Article is written by Professor Michael D. Murray, the author of A Short and Happy Guide to Copyright Law (West 2d ed. 2022), and the principal investigator of the Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, NFTs, and the Metaverse Law Project at the University of Kentucky Rosenberg College of Law.

This Article discusses the copyright issues arising from generative and AI authored artworks under United States copyright law. Generative art NFT projects have become some of the most popular and lucrative projects to date. But certain forms of generative art, particularly those created by artificial intelligence, lack human authorship and thus are uncopyrightable. This Article discusses CryptoPunks, Bored Ape Yacht Club, CryptoKitties, Chromie Squiggles, and other generative and AI authored art projects.

Keywords: NFT, non-fungible tokens, tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, copyright, generative art, randomized art, artificial intelligence, AI authored art, digital artworks, art

JEL Classification: K1, K10, K3, K30, K40, K41