{"id":76626,"date":"2025-06-24T13:34:33","date_gmt":"2025-06-24T13:34:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/?page_id=76626"},"modified":"2026-03-11T17:07:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T17:07:30","slug":"ai-and-the-commons","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/ai-and-the-commons\/","title":{"rendered":"AI and the Commons"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a global leader in open licensing and copyright, we have long stood at the intersection of innovation in the public interest, creativity, and access to knowledge. With the rise of consumer-facing generative AI, which is changing the way people share and access knowledge online, it became clear: CC had to act\u2014urgently, but with care.<\/p>\n

Listening First: Community Engagement in 2022-2024<\/h2>\n

In response, we launched a global consultation effort. We hosted workshops in New York, Boston, San Francisco, London, and Berlin. We attended conferences and convenings globally and tracked and engaged in the development of AI policy and legislation.<\/p>\n

A clear message emerged: many creators and communities feel uneasy about their content being used to develop AI without transparency and are seeking ways to regain agency. Our community has called on us to intervene with new tools that help rebalance power, ultimately infusing the AI ecosystem with reciprocity.<\/p>\n

Why CC Is Uniquely Positioned<\/h2>\n

This moment mirrors another inflection point: the rise of the mainstream internet in the early 2000s. Back then, CC challenged the “all rights reserved” vs. “no rights reserved” binary by offering nuanced, practical tools for creators. The CC licenses<\/a> made it easy to share and have been applied to tens of billions of works on the internet, growing the creative commons and increasing access to knowledge.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s AI challenges call for similarly creative but practical solutions. Once again, sharing on the internet is being tested. Once again, the commons is at stake.<\/p>\n

CC is striving to make sure that AI doesn\u2019t lead to a more closed internet or reduce public access to knowledge and culture.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n

Once again, Creative Commons is challenging the all-or-nothing binary to offer another way.<\/p>\n

Guiding Our Work<\/h2>\n

The AI landscape is complex. Our principled response to sharing in the age of AI is simple.<\/p>\n