Taorui Guan on Contracting Liability for Generative AI (University of Richmond Law Review)

"Contracting Liability for Generative AI"
Taorui Guan
University of Richmond Law Review
Published online: February 2026

Abstract: Generative artificial intelligence (“AI”) is straining the boundaries of long-established secondary liability doctrines in copyright law—including contributory infringement, vicarious liability, inducement, and statutory safe harbors. Courts and policymakers have yet to adapt these doctrines to the challenges that AI’s massive scale, decentralized development network, and opaque “black box” architectures pose, creating considerable legal uncertainty. In response, leading AI providers increasingly rely on contractual solutions—embedding warranties, indemnifications, liability caps, and other provisions into user agreements—seeking to allocate infringement risks preemptively. These evolving contractual approaches both draw upon and diverge from classic doctrines, offering novel insight into how the pressure of generative AI is causing companies to recalibrate their liability rules.

This Article provides a structured analysis of how emerging contractual liability arrangements grapple with generative AI’s unique challenges...(Please read full article here)