While the English-speaking world is having a back and forth about the ethics of generative AI (Artificial Intelligence), Japan has been quietly trying something different.

Recently, a panel under Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs presents the opinion that AI models trained on copyrighted materials could be an infringement of copyright. However what’s most surprising is that at the present, there are few restrictions on what AI is allowed to use to train models, or what it can generate.

This is a surprise since Japan’s entertainment industry can be notoriously litigious. However in a bid to remain at the forefront of a burgeoning technology, it seems Japan has thrown caution to the wind, that is until now.

The panel is hoping to have a conversation about copyright and AI models between now and March which should ultimately inform Japanese lawmakers going forward. We’ll have to wait and see what they decide on.