On October 4, the FTC hosted a virtual roundtable to hear directly from creators on how generative AI is affecting their work and livelihood. FTC Chair Lina Khan noted the Commission’s role enforcing rules of fair competition and its intention to “keep pace” to fully understand how new technology can be used and the negative impacts. Khan reminded the audience that there is no “AI exemption” to the laws regarding unfair methods of competition or collusion, discrimination, or deception. In addition, Commissioner Kelly Slaughter mentioned that the generative AI dynamic of web scraping is often performed without the knowledge of creators whose livelihood depends on displaying a public portfolio.

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, chief negotiator for SAG AFTRA, stated that the companies using AI technology must receive informed consent and compensation for the use of individuals’ likenesses. John August, committee member for the Writers Guild of America, explained the union’s position that AI generated content can be considered an unfair method of competition, and that creators deserve protection against the unfair use of their work. Douglas Preston, author and former president of the Writers Guild of America, shared that he is part of a class action lawsuit with 16 other authors against a generative AI platform.

Overall, participants asked the FTC to initiate rulemaking, and support in federal legislation as necessary to underpin the protection of creators’ livelihood, as technology is outpacing law and regulation. They suggested that moving forward, platforms should request creators to opt-in, rather than opt-out of the use of their works to teach and support generative AI output. Moreover, participants repeatedly mentioned a need for disclosures for consumers, so they know when synthetic AI-generated voices, among other things, are used in content generated for consumers.