Contract Dispute Resolution International IPRInsights from AI Landmark Rulings

September 17, 20250

In recent years, the Beijing Internet Court has seen a year-on-year increase in new types of cases involving artificial intelligence, covering various causes of action such as intellectual property infringement, online tort liability, and internet service contracts. To better serve and ensure the healthy and orderly development of the AI industry, the Beijing Internet Court held a press conference on the adjudication of AI-related cases on 10 September , releasing the characteristics of AI-related cases, challenges in adjudication, adjudication approaches, and typical cases, and proposing targeted suggestions for properly resolving such disputes.

Three Characteristics:

Continuous expansion of coverage across industries: As AI empowers thousands of industries, AI-related cases are no longer confined to the internet sector but are penetrating traditional industries, resulting in a mix of emerging and traditional scenarios, technological intersections, and intertwined interests.
Iterative upgrading of innovation risks for market entities: Products and services applying AI technology are rapidly emerging, and the uncertainties of technologies such as AI hallucinations expose market entities, including model developers, service providers, and users, to new and complex legal risks.
Prominent role of adjudication rules in guiding the industry: Judicial rulings in AI-related cases not only address technical and legal aspects of individual cases but also carry the value-oriented function of balancing technological ethics, innovation incentives, and rights protection, profoundly influencing the direction of technological development and the formation of social ethical norms.

Three Major Challenges:

Complexity of technology application makes fact-finding difficult.
Inadequate rule adaptation leads to challenges in law application.
Diversified roles of entities make responsibility determination difficult.

Adjudication Approach:

The Beijing Internet Court always adheres to the principles of establishing rules through adjudication, promoting governance, and supporting development. It handles AI cases properly in accordance with the law, upholding the people-oriented concept. When technology application conflicts with personality rights, the court accurately defines the connotation and extension of personality rights and protects virtual images and synthetic voices in accordance with the law. It insists on a goodness-oriented direction, precisely balancing the interests of all parties, curbing malicious use of technology, cracking down on the use of AI for vilification and mockery, and regulating the labeling of AI-generated content by platforms. It persists in incentivizing innovation, strengthening judicial protection of intellectual property rights, recognizing the copyrightability of “AI text-to-image” works and virtual digital humans, and fully respecting the intellectual input of innovators.

Eight Typical Cases:

Clarified the legal attributes and ownership of rights of “AI text-to-image” works.
Extended natural persons’ voice rights to AI-generated voices.
Unauthorized use of AI-synthesized celebrity voices for “product promotion” constitutes infringement, and commissioning merchants shall bear joint liability.
Unauthorized “AI face-swapping” of videos containing others’ portraits constitutes infringement of personal information rights.
Online platforms using algorithmic tools to detect AI-generated content but failing to fulfill reasonable and appropriate explanation obligations shall bear liability for breach of contract.
Using AI software to vilify and mock others’ portraits constitutes personality right infringement.
Original virtual digital human images constitute works of art.
Unauthorized creation of AI images of natural persons constitutes infringement of personality rights

Four Points of Suggestion:

Internet users should enhance legal awareness and digital literacy, clarify their behavioral boundaries, and protect their legitimate rights and interests in accordance with the law.
AI technology developers should strictly adhere to technical ethical standards and ensure the legality of data and base model sources.
AI service providers should actively improve management mechanisms and strengthen their primary responsibility.
Collaborative cooperation in AI supervision shall be enhanced to form regulatory synergy.

The wave of AI is reshaping the business ecosystem and bringing unprecedented legal risks and compliance challenges. Whether it is the innovative practices of technology developers or the commercial exploration of enterprises in applying AI technology, there is an urgent need for professional and forward-looking legal and strategic guidance.

As a professional provider of business solutions, ICL Consulting always keeps abreast of technological frontiers and regulatory developments. We are committed to helping enterprises address with ease key issues such as compliance governance, intellectual property strategy, data security, and business model innovation in the AI era. Our team possesses industry knowledge and legal expertise, offering:

Intellectual Property Strategy Protection: Assist in securing rights for AI-generated content, virtual digital humans, and other new types of intellectual property, and develop rights management and enforcement strategies.
Risk Prevention: Design risk-controlled business application solutions for enterprises based on the latest judicial rulings to address potential litigation.

In the world of law, patience precedes justice

Contract Dispute Resolution International IPRInsights from AI Landmark Rulings

Leave a Reply Cancel Reply

LINKS

FREE CONSULTATION