Amend copyright licences to halt AI misuse and reassert human control

Generative artificial-intelligence models, notably large language models (LLMs), are disrupting intellectual-property rights. Crucially, present-day copyright licences cannot accommodate human adaptation and prevent AI misuse simultaneously. Copyright holders can, for instance, select the BY-ND ‘no derivatives’ Creative Commons (CC) licence to protect against AI misuse. However, this also prevents legitimate creative human adaptation of the copyrighted material.

Nature 656, 1070 (2026)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-02633-y

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