Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce Inc (NYSE: CRM) and owner of Time magazine, accused artificial intelligence companies of using stolen intellectual property.
It included content from media outlets like Time and The New York Times Co (NYSE: NYT) to develop their technologies.
He highlighted this issue in an interview at Bloomberg House at the World Economic Forum in Davos Tuesday.
The growing concern centers on using copyrighted materials by large language model creators, such as ChatGPT's developer, OpenAI.
Time and other publications like CNN and Fox Corp (NASDAQ: FOX) are discussing licensing agreements with OpenAI.
The New York Times has even filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT) for unauthorized use of its articles.
Benioff emphasized the uncertainty surrounding the fair pricing of this data and advocated for standardized payments to content creators.
He also mentioned Salesforce's commitment to a "trust layer" in its AI-powered software to safeguard customer data.
OpenAIs CEO Sam Altman countered these claims, arguing that training data is often overvalued and that his company avoids using restricted news content.
He also stated that OpenAI is exploring new partnerships and ways to use news content legally and effectively, mentioning agreements with the Associated Press and Axel Springer SE.
Benioff also expressed concerns about AI's risks to the democratic process, especially in an election year.
Still, he identified social media as a more significant threat, criticizing regulators for their lack of action.
Previous reports indicated OpenAI in talks with CNN, Fox Corp, and Time for content licensing.
This move is part of the company's efforts to enhance ChatGPT's capabilities and address copyright infringement concerns.
OpenAI's strategy includes using licensed material from diverse media sources to improve the accuracy and relevance of its AI offerings.