Do You Own Your AI Code? The 'Authorship Dilemma' in Indian Law
You prompted it. You paid for the API credits. But if you take it to court, the judge might say you don't own it.
Imagine this: You are the CTO of a rising SaaS startup in Bangalore. Your team has just shipped a revolutionary new feature. It was built in record time, two weeks instead of two months, thanks to GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT. You are feeling invincible.
Six months later, a competitor launches a near-identical feature. You sue for copyright infringement. Their defense? "Your honor, they didn't write this code. An AI did. And under Indian law, an AI cannot own copyright."
The room goes silent.
This isn't a dystopian fiction; it is the Authorship Dilemma facing every Indian developer in 2026. As we rush to adopt generative AI intellectual property rights become the casualty of speed.
This guide dissects the murky legal waters of AI copyright ownership India, helping you understand if you are building an asset or just renting an output.
1. The Legal Wall: Why Your "Co-Pilot" Can't Be an Author
The root of the problem lies in a law written when "Artificial Intelligence" was just science fiction.
Section 2(d)(vi) Copyright Act India defines the "author" of a computer-generated work as "the person who causes the work to be created."
The keyword here is "Person."
In Indian jurisprudence, a "person" is a human or a legal entity (like a company). An AI model, no matter how smart, is neither. This creates a massive legal vacuum:
- The RAGHAV Case: In a controversial move, the Indian Copyright Office once recognized an AI tool ("RAGHAV") as a co-author. However, this is widely regarded by legal experts as an anomaly, not a precedent. The global consensus (and likely future Indian rulings) leans towards "No Human, No Copyright."
The Risk: If you use an AI agent to write 90% of your codebase with only minor tweaks, a court could rule that the work lacks "human authorship," placing your proprietary code effectively in the public domain.
2. The "Substantial Input" Test: Are You a Creator or a Prompter?
So, can AI be an author in India? No. But can you be the author if you used AI?
Maybe. It depends on the "Sweat of the Brow." Courts look for "Substantial Human Input."
You type "Write a Python script to scrape LinkedIn" > Copy/Paste code.
Verdict: Likely not copyrightable. The AI did the heavy lifting; you just gave a command.
You design the system architecture, write the core logic, use AI to autocomplete specific functions, and then debug/refine the output significantly.
Verdict: Likely copyrightable. The AI was a tool (like a pen), but the creative logic was yours.
Strategic Advice: To secure copyrighting AI generated code, you must document your "Human-in-the-Loop" process. Keep version history showing human edits. Don't just commit the AI's first draft.
3. The Asset Trap: Tripo, Udio, and Commercial Suicide
It’s not just code. Marketing and Design teams are generating 3D assets and music at scale. But have you read the fine print?
- Tripo AI Commercial License Terms: Many AI 3D generators have tiered rights. Their free tiers often grant a "Creative Commons" license (meaning anyone can use your asset), or worse, they retain ownership while granting you a limited license. Using a free-tier asset in a commercial game could get your game delisted.
- Udio AI Copyright Infringement: Music generation is even riskier. If Udio generates a jingle for your ad that accidentally mimics a copyrighted Bollywood track (because it was trained on it), you are liable for the infringement, not the AI company.
The Golden Rule: Never use "Free Tier" AI generations in a "Paid Product." Always verify if the platform offers an indemnity clause (protection if you get sued). Most don't.
4. The Battlefield: ANI Media v. OpenAI
All eyes are on the Delhi High Court. The ANI Media vs OpenAI case study is India's first major battle over fair dealing AI training data India.
The Core Question: Is it legal for OpenAI to train ChatGPT on ANI's news articles without paying?
Why it Matters to You: If the court rules that training on copyrighted data is infringement, it opens the door for lawsuits against any company building custom models on scraped data. If you are fine-tuning a model on data you don't own, you are sitting on a legal time bomb.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Not automatically. OpenAI assigns its rights to you, but that doesn't mean the law recognizes those rights. If the code is purely AI-generated without human creativity, it might still be considered "non-copyrightable" by an Indian court, meaning a competitor could copy it without legal consequence.
Likely not. Following global trends (like the US "Zarya of the Dawn" ruling) and the ambiguity of the Indian Copyright Act, purely AI-generated images lack the "human authorship" required for copyright. You might be able to trademark it (brand protection), but copyrighting the artistic work itself is difficult.
Treat AI code like Open Source. Assume you don't own it. Use it for generic, utility functions (boilerplate, API calls) where copyright doesn't matter much. For your "Secret Sauce" (core algorithms, unique business logic), write it yourself or heavily modify the AI's output to ensure substantial human input.
Companies like Microsoft and Google offer to pay your legal fees if you get sued for using their AI outputs (Copilot/Gemini). However, this protection often comes with strict conditions (e.g., you must use their built-in guardrails). Always read the AI asset protection strategies in their enterprise contracts carefully.
Continue Your Compliance Journey
Now that you understand the IP risks, secure your infrastructure and data.
Sources & References
- The Copyright Act, 1957: Copyright Office Government of India. Reference: Section 2(d)(vi) - Definition of Author.
- ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. v. OpenAI Inc. (2024): Delhi High Court Listing. Significance: The landmark case determining the legality of using Indian news content for AI training.
- US Copyright Office Guidance (Influential for Indian Policy). Relevance: Establishing the "Human Authorship" standard adopted globally.
- Tripo AI Terms. Verify licensing terms for free vs. paid plans.
- Udio Terms of Service. Check sections on commercial rights.