Library Guides: Copyright for Faculty at Mohawk College: AI and Copyright

AI and Copyright

How is AI being used?

The use of AI content is increasing in academia. The availability and ease of use of generative AI tools have led to questions about copyright. This page will provide a brief synopsis of AI, its risks, and recommended strategies related to copyright.

Generative AI can help in the creation or adaptation of instructional content, but there is legal uncertainty when it comes to using these tools. As this topic evolves, information on this page will change over time.

AI and copyright involve:

Input: AI content is generated through large amounts of data. These systems are "trained" to copy content without permission from the rights holders. This has resulted in several lawsuits due to copyright infringement. For education, it remains unclear how fair dealing can be applied since this topic is evolving.

Output: The author of a work is not well-defined under the Canadian Copyright Act. Generally, an "author" refers to a person who created the work or put it in a fixed form. The ownership of content created through AI is unclear as there are varying degrees of human input, making it difficult to determine the author and owner of the work.

What to Consider if Bringing AI into the Classroom

Exercise caution when using AI tools in the creation of course content. This topic is still developing in the Canadian courts and through policy development. Concrete guidelines are emerging.

While Generative AI tools are helpful, there are ethical risks and concerns to consider when using these resources in an academic environment:

Lack of transparency: AI tools are trained on data, but the programming logic is not always available to the public. Further, companies that develop these tools may not explain how they work or how their tools arrived at the output they did.

Content source: With a lack of transparency around programming logic, it is unclear whether generated content is infringing on copyrighted material. Currently, there are lawsuits claiming that generative AI tools are creating unauthorized derivatives.

Developing case law: Canadian legal rulings around AI content are developing. Shared international copyright and trade agreements continue to inform how generative AI impacts intellectual property.

Although this aspect of copyright is emerging, here are some best practices:

Use caution: AI generated content is an area that is in flux and guidelines and recommendations are emerging.
Be transparent: As with other areas of attribution, include a statement letting others know that you have used generative AI. This could include: what was created, what tools were used (including a link), how the tool was used, date of generation and steps used to review the content for accuracy or suitability.
Be aware of changes: Legal consensus is developing and fair dealing may not be appropriate if creating an unauthorized derivative through generative AI tools.
Be mindful of inputs: Do not use content that may include corporate logos or patents. If using AI to create a summary of another work, be sure that you're doing so fairly. Never input significant portions of intellectual property. For example, it would contravene copyright to input substantial portions of full-text library-licensed resources. Mohawk Library signs license agreements with vendors and publishers. These terms and conditions define user responsibilities and permitted terms of use, including generative AI. To avoid these risks, consider using public domain and openly licensed content.
Review Terms of Use: These terms will dictate ownership and may be subject to change. While these tools aid in content creation, you may not necessarily hold or own the copyright on generated works.

Disclosing the use of Generative AI

It is important to not only cite the information you are using from a generative AI tool but to also note the way in which you have used the generative AI tool (e.g., to summarize, format, brainstorm topics, etc.). There are several disclosure frameworks available to help (see the other tabs in this box). Generally, you should:

Include an in-text citation and a reference in your References List
Note the tool used, purpose and prompt. Example: "The Perplexity generative AI tool was used to provide ideas for the structure of this paper using the prompt: "Provide an outline for a second year college-level essay on the benefits of lily pads to frogs.""
Include the prompt/description in the Methods section, Introduction or body of your paper.
Add an an Appendix with the output/text from the generative AI or include it in Supplemental Materials. Be sure to call out the Appendix in the body of your paper at least once! See the box below for guidance on how to obtain the output/text from the generative AI tool.
Include the date of access
Include how you used the model – e.g., to generate search terms, to brainstorm topics, etc.

The Artificial Intelligence Disclosure (AID) Framework (2024) is one tool you can use to declare usage. This framework was developed by Kari D. Weaver, Learning, Teaching, and Instructional Design Librarian, to enhance transparency and consistency in attribution practices for generative artificial intelligence.

The Artificial Intelligence Disclosure (AID) Framework provides a means for you to disclose your use of AI in your research.

Add the AID statement at the end of your paper
In the statement, include the tool used and a description of how it was used. The Framework provides a list of potential uses of AI tools for you to choose from. These are called “headings”.
Use this format for the AID statement: AID Statement: Artificial Intelligence Tool: [description of tools used]; [Heading- how you used the AI tool]: [description of AI use in that stage of the work]; Note that a colon appears after each section heading and each heading: statement pair is separated by a semi-colon. The statement ends in a period.
Example of an AID statement: AID Statement: Artificial Intelligence Tool: Microsoft Copilot (Mohawk College institutional instance); Data Analysis: Microsoft Copilot was used to analyze the focus group data I collected for this research paper; Interpretation: Microsoft Copilot was used to summarize and categorize the themes in the focus group data and suggest conclusions.
See a list of the potential headings (e.g., interpretation, data analysis, etc.) at this University of Waterloo webpage. Use only the headings that are relevant.

This content is an adaptation of the Artificial Intelligence Disclosure (AID) Framework (2024) by Dr. Kari D. Weaver, University of Waterloo Libraries. It has been produced as allowed under its assigned CC-BY-SA 4.0 license.

Another option to declare your use is the GAIDet tool.

GAIDeT stands for Generative Artificial Intelligence Delegation Taxonomy. This framework is used to specifically declare the use of generative AI in the process of research. It was developed by professors at the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University in The Netherlands. The tool allows you to declare the particular details of the tool used and how it was used, allowing researchers to be clear and transparent about use of generative AI. The GAIDet Declaration Generator allows you to enter your information about use of genAI and a declaration is generated for you so that you can copy and paste it into your manuscript.

The AI Info Hub

Created by the Centre for Teaching, Learning & Innovation, the AI Info Hub is your source for navigating the emerging AI-powered tools in education. Included is the AICompass App created by Mohawk College Professor Andrew Reszitnyk, which provides an easy way for faculty to track GenAI use in course development.