Arguments over AI training data involve legal claims, reported private communications and policy proposals. Those sources have different evidential status and should not be treated as a single finding about every scraping activity.
AI scraping and copyright litigation reports
TechCrunch reports unredacted filings from US copyright litigation and describes an executive’s private characterisation of AI scraping as theft. That reported opinion is distinct from a court ruling that every form of training-data collection is unlawful. The article also does not establish that the result of a particular US dispute determines the legal position of every UK business.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/17/microsoft-exec-called-ai-scraping-the-largest-theft-of-labor-in-human-history-new-unredacted-filings-reveal/
The UK report followed the consultation
The UK government’s March 2026 report considers consultation responses and evidence about copyright and AI. It states that a broad exception with an opt-out is no longer its preferred way forward, and proposes gathering further evidence and considering alternatives. Describing the older consultation as simply still open misses this later published policy position.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-and-impact-assessment-on-copyright-and-artificial-intelligence/report-on-copyright-and-artificial-intelligence
Policy review is not blanket permission
The report discusses transparency, licensing and effective enforcement as well as the need for further evidence. Its consideration of reform does not itself create a universal permission to copy protected works, nor does it establish that all data collection is unlawful. The rights, permissions, applicable exceptions and particular use matter; a debate about future rules should not be presented as an already enacted replacement framework.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-and-impact-assessment-on-copyright-and-artificial-intelligence/report-on-copyright-and-artificial-intelligence
Sources and further reading
https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/17/microsoft-exec-called-ai-scraping-the-largest-theft-of-labor-in-human-history-new-unredacted-filings-reveal/
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-and-impact-assessment-on-copyright-and-artificial-intelligence/report-on-copyright-and-artificial-intelligence