Patreon CEO Jack Conte Calls AI Companies' Fair Use Defence 'Bogus' at SXSW

Patreon CEO Jack Conte, speaking at SXSW, attacked AI companies for claiming fair use while simultaneously signing multimillion-dollar licensing deals with Disney, Condé Nast, Vox Media, and Warner Music. 'The AI companies are claiming fair use, but this argument is bogus,' Conte said. 'If it's legal to just use it, why pay?' He argued that the selective application of licensing — to large rights holders but not individual creators — reveals a double standard that the fair use doctrine cannot legitimately sustain.