alt Hacker News> if AI generates something that is equal to existing code, then the license of that code applies.
No, it doesn't, if the generation is independent of the existing code. If a person using AI uses existing code and makes a literal copy of it, then, yes, the copyright (and any license offer applicable in the circumstances) of the existing code may apply (it may also not, the same as with copies of portions of code made by other means), and it's less than clear if (especially for small portions of code) that legally such a copy has been made when a work is in the training set.
Copyright protects against copying. It doesn't protect against someone creating the same content by means other than copying.
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If I read harry potter and randomly rewrite it you think I have a chance against Rowling?
if the generation is independent of the existing code
well, that's the big question, isn't it? if the code is used for training AI and the AI reproduces the same code, is that really independent?
i don't think so.
Copyright protects against copying. It doesn't protect against someone creating the same content by means other than copying.
if the code is the same, how do you prove it's not a copy?
it's the same problem as with plagiarism, isn't it?