Authors miffed by publisher’s offer to use their books for AI training [Video]

Authors are voicing concerns after a major book publisher offered payments in exchange for permission to use their books to train artificial intelligence. 

Daniel Kibblesmith, an Emmy-nominated writer and comedian who writes for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, posted a memo from HarperCollins — a major publisher that is also home to dozens of Canadian authors — offering $2,500 US to use his children’s book Santa’s Husband to train an AI model for an unnamed “large tech company.”

“Abominable,” Kibblesmith posted to the social media platform Bluesky on Friday — with screenshots of the messages alongside his response. He declined. 

The memo, forwarded to Kibblesmith and his illustrator by his agency, acknowledges controversies surrounding AI, including that it “may one day make us all obsolete.”

“That said, the technology is already here and is being used,” it continues, claiming the offer has already been agreed to by “several hundred authors.” 

Risk of gutting the industry

Kibblesmith told CBC News he was …