Australian author Anna Funder has called on artists to defend their copyright in the age of artificial intelligence, warning that big tech companies are seeking to exploit creative works without fair compensation. Funder, who travelled to Canberra with a group of creatives, highlighted that books, songs, artwork, films, and music are being ingested into AI programs without consent or payment.
Copyright as Property
Funder emphasised that creative works are property protected by copyright law, similar to real estate under Torrens Title. She explained that her books are licensed to publishers worldwide, with royalties of 8-12% returning to her. Without copyright, she argued, creators would have no incentive to produce work. However, all her books have been used in AI training without permission.
Big tech companies, hoping to make vast fortunes from AI, are basing their valuations on not paying suppliers for the ingredients—creative works. Funder noted that dozens of lawsuits are pending in the US, and tech firms are lobbying governments to change laws to legalise their actions. In the Bartz v Anthropic case, a US$1.5bn settlement was awarded to authors, but Funder will receive only US$3,000 for one stolen edition of her book All That I Am.
Lobbying in Australia
Funder stated that representatives from Google, Meta, and Anthropic have been lobbying the Australian government to weaken copyright protections. She accused them of falsely linking copyright changes to AI datacentre construction. The government previously rejected a “text and data mining exemption” that would have allowed free use of copyrighted works. Now, big tech is reportedly proposing a compulsory acquisition scheme, where the government would administer a fund to pay creators a statutory handout—a move Funder described as “out of the question.”
She argued that negotiating consent is straightforward: “It would involve a call to my publisher, and a negotiation of price.” The Australian Society of Authors estimates it would take six phone calls to find rights holders for most book industry copyrights. Funder contrasted this with the effort tech companies expended to illegally obtain books, including downloading from pirate sites or scanning physical books after ripping off spines.
Historical Context
Funder noted that copyright has existed since the 1710 Statute of Anne, enabling creators to live independently from royalties rather than relying on patrons. She warned that without copyright, Australia could resemble East Germany, where lack of respect for intellectual property harmed society. “I certainly don’t want a US tech bro fund as a patron,” she concluded.
