Seattle Times and Newsday Sue AI for Reading Their Morning Papers Without Asking

KEY POINTS

•On September 5, 2026, The Seattle Times and Newsday sued OpenAI and Microsoft alleging unauthorized use of their journalism as AI training data.
•The lawsuit coincides with OpenAI's rollout of GPT-6 Astra in Creteil, France, their most advanced AI model to date.
•This case adds to nearly 400 similar lawsuits by news outlets including The New York Times and Encyclopaedia Britannica.

In a thrilling new episode of 'Content Creators vs. The Infinite Data Sponge,' The Seattle Times and Newsday have teamed up to file a copyright infringement lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft on September 5, 2026. The alleged offense? Using their journalism as training data for GPT-6 Astra—OpenAI's shiny new AI model launched just a day earlier in Creteil, France—without so much as a 'please' or 'thank you.' This lawsuit joins the growing chorus including The New York Times, Ziff Davis, Merriam-Webster, and Encyclopedia Britannica. Nearly 400 local newspapers are now apparently suing to remind AI it can’t just copy-paste news articles like a multitasking parrot. Microsoft’s named too, thanks to Copilot’s cozy connections with OpenAI’s tech, implying even software wingmen are getting dragged into this legal family reunion.