Key facts
- News Corp has filed a countersuit against Brave Software, accusing it of "flagrant theft" of copyrighted articles.
News Corp has filed a countersuit against search engine Brave Software, accusing it of "flagrant theft" for allegedly scraping and selling copyrighted articles from publications like the Wall Street Journal and New York Post to AI companies. Brave had previously sued News Corp seeking a declaration that its practices were legal.
This legal dispute highlights the growing conflict between content publishers and technology companies over the use of copyrighted material for training artificial intelligence models, raising critical questions about fair use, intellectual property, and the future of journalism in the AI era.
News Corp has filed a countersuit against search engine Brave Software, accusing it of "flagrant theft" for allegedly scraping and selling copyrighted articles from its publications, including the Wall Street Journal and New York Post, to AI companies. The legal battle began when Brave preemptively sued News Corp last year, seeking a court declaration that its practices were legal after receiving a cease-and-desist letter.
In its Tuesday filing in Oakland, California federal court, News Corp argued that Brave's unauthorized "covert scraping" and resale of its copyrighted content fall outside the bounds of fair use. The company stated that Brave profits while publishers are cut out, reducing the incentive for AI companies to negotiate licenses. News Corp is seeking an injunction and unspecified monetary damages, including up to $150,000 per infringement.
Brave, which previously revised its complaint in May 2026 following failed negotiations, contends that its indexing of News Corp content to provide users with snippets and high-level summaries constitutes fair use. The company also accused News Corp of threatening advances in generative AI, which it considers a significant innovation.
News Corp Chief Executive Robert Thomson described Brave's actions as a "looting" that reflects a "blatant disregard" for the damage to information dissemination and stated that "this era of tacky tech trafficking must come to an end if journalism is to have a sustainable future."
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