Salesforce is facing a proposed class action lawsuit in the United States, accused of using copyrighted books without permission to train its artificial intelligence models. Filed by novelists Molly Tanzer and Jennifer Gilmore, the lawsuit claims the cloud software giant used pirated literary works to train its xGen language models—without compensating or crediting the original authors.
According to court filings, Salesforce allegedly drew on “thousands of books” to build and enhance its AI capabilities, using material sourced from illegal online repositories. The complaint, filed in a U.S. federal court, seeks damages for copyright infringement and demands accountability for the use of creative works in AI model development.
Transparency and Compensation at the Heart of the Debate
The lawsuit, represented by attorney Joseph Saveri—known for leading similar copyright cases against OpenAI, Microsoft, and Meta—argues that Salesforce violated intellectual property rights while benefiting commercially from AI models trained on copyrighted data. Saveri emphasized the need for transparency in how AI companies obtain and process training material, adding that creators “deserve fair compensation when their work is used to train profitable systems.”
Notably, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has previously criticised AI firms for using “stolen data” to train large language models, calling for more ethical practices within the industry. The complaint directly references Benioff’s comments, stating that his own company should now “practice what it preaches.” Salesforce has declined to comment on the ongoing litigation.
Broader Industry Fallout from AI Copyright Battles
The case adds to a growing list of legal challenges targeting major AI developers over the use of copyrighted materials. In recent months, several lawsuits have been filed by authors, journalists, and content creators against companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta Platforms.
In August 2025, AI startup Anthropic reached a landmark $1.5 billion settlement with a coalition of authors, marking one of the largest intellectual property payouts in AI history. These cases collectively represent a pivotal moment for the tech industry, as courts weigh how copyright law applies to machine learning and data scraping.
Industry and Legal Experts Call for Clearer AI Governance
Industry experts believe the lawsuit could influence emerging regulatory frameworks around AI data sourcing and copyright protection. Analysts argue that legal clarity is urgently needed to balance innovation with intellectual property rights, especially as AI models increasingly rely on large-scale text and media datasets.
Legal scholar Rachel Linden from the Center for Digital Policy said, “The Salesforce case will likely serve as a precedent for how courts define fair use in the context of AI training. What’s at stake isn’t just compensation—it’s the ethical foundation of generative AI itself.”
The outcome of this case could shape future data governance norms, forcing technology companies to adopt new licensing mechanisms or transparent content partnerships before training their AI systems.
(This news was first reported by Reuters)
