Learning from monkeys: Authorship issues arising from AI technology

Artificial intelligence is experiencing rapid growth, taking centre stage in R&D investments, policy-making forums and academic literature. The protection of AI generated artwork under copyright law is only one of many policy questions across a range of issues within the intellectual property domain, considering AI as both object and subject of IP protection. However, it has already sparked debates all over the world for the re-examination of copyright legal framework. This Article wishes to contribute to this debate, addressing two research questions: (a) whether works independently created by artificial intelligence systems are eligible for copyright protection under the existing legal framework and (b) whether copyright is actually the best solution for protecting investments in robot-artists.