Copyright Risk in Financial Services and the Rise of Responsible AI – with Lauren Tulloch of CCC

Financial firms face copyright exposure in two distinct areas: building/fine-tuning AI systems with external content, and employees using AI tools in daily workflows. Enterprise subscriptions to journals, news, and market analysis typically don't include AI training rights, creating a gap between technical teams' needs and existing licensing agreements. Survey data shows nearly 80% of employees use AI tools, with only 21% rarely or never using them.

• •Enterprise content subscriptions (journals, news, market analysis) don't automatically grant AI training or fine-tuning rights
• •Technical teams refining AI systems may not understand copyright terms of existing subscriptions, creating compliance gaps
• •80% of financial services employees are using AI tools in daily work, creating widespread copyright exposure
• •Fine-tuning AI with external expert content requires separate licensing beyond standard 'read-only' subscription agreements

Financial services firms are ahead of other industries in AI adoption but are heavily reliant on external information for forecasting and analysis. This creates dual risks: either not using published content (limiting AI value) or using it without proper licensing (exposing firms to publisher litigation). The speed of AI adoption in financial services amplifies urgency, as firms may be building entire systems on unlicensed content.

• •Financial services firms are adopting AI faster than other industries, increasing exposure timeline
• •Reliance on external information for forecasting creates unavoidable need for proper content licensing
• •Risk of publishers claiming firms built entire systems on content licensed only for employee read-access
• •Not using published content limits AI effectiveness; using it without licensing creates legal exposure

Copyright should be a foundational element of responsible AI frameworks, not an afterthought. Since employees already understand that AI systems require content to function, introducing the concept of content ownership is straightforward. Copyright awareness can be integrated alongside existing policies for confidential information and trade secrets, using similar verification processes for content ownership and licensing permissions.

• •Make copyright a foundational element of responsible AI frameworks from the start, not a compliance afterthought
• •Leverage employees' existing understanding of how LLMs work to introduce content ownership concepts
• •Apply same rigor to copyright verification as used for confidential information and trade secrets
• •Partner with content aggregators and collective licensing organizations to manage licensing across multiple publishers

The priority for financial institutions should be comprehensive employee education covering copyright basics, organizational policies, and clear escalation paths. Employees need to know who to contact when uncertain about AI tool usage or content licensing. This process-oriented approach helps identify gaps in understanding and enables firms to refine policies based on real employee questions and use cases.

• •Implement multi-layered education: copyright fundamentals, why it matters for AI, and internal processes/policies
• •Establish clear escalation paths so employees know exactly who to contact with licensing questions
• •Use employee questions to identify knowledge gaps and iteratively improve policies and procedures
• •Simple process clarity (knowing who to ask) can significantly mitigate organizational copyright risk