CNN files copyright infringement lawsuit against Perplexity

CNN has filed a lawsuit against Perplexity in a New York court, alleging that the company improperly used its copyrighted material to “power its products”, according to media reports.

As stated in the complaint, Perplexity allegedly copied CNN articles, videos and images to create content that is “identical or substantially similar” to the news organisation’s original work.

CNN argued that the AI company’s actions “infringe on its intellectual property rights and undermine the economics of original journalism”.

The broadcaster has sought damages along with a court order restraining Perplexity from continuing to use its copyrighted content without permission.

CNN issued a statement asserting that Perplexity should not be permitted to monetise content produced by news publishers. The company maintained that the AI startup’s use of its journalism breaches copyright protections and threatens the economic incentives that sustain original reporting.

According to a Reuters report, responding to the lawsuit, Jesse Dwyer, spokesperson for Perplexity, said, “You can’t copyright facts.”