Publishers seek safeguards over suspected AI book-buying spree

Korean publishers are calling for stronger copyright protections and compensation as bulk book purchase requests suspected of being linked to artificial intelligence (AI) training raise concerns over intellectual property theft. Publishing groups are investigating suspicious orders and seeking a coordinated response. However, authors and publishers face a fundamental obstacle: they often cannot know for sure whether their books are being used to train AI systems. Kyobo Book Centre, a bookstore chain in Korea, said on Wednesday that 10 overseas companies, including businesses in the United States and Britain, had approached it since early this year, each seeking only one copy of roughly 100,000 titles. “Many introduced themselves as book wholesalers,” a Kyobo official was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency Tuesday. The official added that some denied an AI training purpose but identified data-related companies as the final recipients. The bookseller declined the request because it could not rule out the use of AI training. Yes24, another bookstore, also reportedly received an inqui