Expert calls for baseline AI regulation to protect creators
Author
Date 8 August 2025
Debate has erupted over how the government should regulate artificial intelligence, while the Productivity Commission has argued for a light touch to potentially unlock billions of dollars of economic gain.
Appearing on ABC Radio National Breakfast, Prof Kimberlee Weatherall, a University of Sydney Law Professor and Chief Investigator from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society (ADM+S), and former member of the Commonwealth Government’s Temporary AI Expert Group, warned that current copyright frameworks are leaving both creators and AI developers in legal limbo.
“People’s material is and has been used to train AI,” Professor Weatherall said.
“Mostly in terms of the big models, most of that training happening overseas, but it has happened without permission and there’s certainly some fairly large databases.”
She pointed to the notorious Books3 database, which includes pirated books and has been used in AI training, as a key example of how creators’ rights are being overlooked.
Weatherall recognised that Australian creators face major barriers when trying to enforce their rights.
“If you try to bring litigation for example here in Australia where we don’t have an exception, you know you’re going to face a defendant who’s based overseas, [and] face challenges in enforcing that judgement.”
But critically, Prof Weatherall said it is also challenging for people who want to train AI responsibly in Australia: copyright exceptions are narrow; but getting all the licences needed could be impossible:
“There is no central system for doing so.”
Prof Kimberlee Weatherall argued that waiting years to review existing laws is too slow given the pace of AI development. She supports reforming consumer protection and privacy law, but also introducing baseline regulations now to ensure AI is developed and used responsibly and safely.
Listen to the full interview on ABC RN Breakfast: How should Australia regulate AI?
