Who owns AI-generated content in Canada? Copyright for creators and startups
Written by For Founders Law, a Toronto firm licensed by the Law Society of Ontario. About us
In short
Canada's Copyright Act protects original works by human authors automatically, but it doesn't say whether output generated by AI is protected, and no Canadian court has decided it. Content where a person makes meaningful creative choices stands on firmer ground than raw output from a prompt. Until the law settles, contracts, AI tool terms, records of how work was made and registered trademarks do most of the protecting.
Creators, design studios and software companies now use generative AI for images, video, music, copy and code. The question we hear most is simple: do we own what comes out? In Canada, the honest answer is that the law hasn’t decided.
This post is general information, not legal advice.
What copyright protects
Copyright arises automatically in original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, which include software code, videos, photos, scripts and designs. You don’t need to register. The Supreme Court of Canada has described originality as requiring an exercise of skill and judgment that is more than a purely mechanical exercise (CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Upper Canada, 2004 SCC 13). The Copyright Act doesn’t define “author,” but much of it assumes a human one, for example by measuring the term of protection from the author’s death.
Where AI output fits
The Copyright Act doesn’t address AI-generated works, and we’re not aware of any Canadian court decision on them. The federal government consulted on copyright and generative AI starting in 2023 but hasn’t changed the Act.
The main test case shows the uncertainty. In 2021, CIPO’s online system registered copyright in an image called SURYAST listing a human and an AI application as co-authors. CIPO doesn’t verify authorship when it registers copyright. In 2024, the Samuelson-Glushko Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC) asked the Federal Court to expunge or correct the registration, arguing that the work lacks originality and that an AI system can’t be an author. As of this post, the case hasn’t been decided.
Practical reading of where things stand:
- Work where a person makes meaningful creative choices, such as selecting, arranging, editing and combining material, is on firmer ground than output from a single prompt.
- Raw AI output may have little or no copyright protection, which means others may be able to copy it.
- A copyright registration certificate for AI-assisted work is useful evidence, but it doesn’t settle the question.
What you can do now
Keep records. Save drafts, prompts, source material and edit history, so you can show your own creative contribution if ownership is ever challenged.
Read the AI tool’s terms. Some providers assign output to the user, some grant a licence, some restrict commercial use, and some reserve rights to use your inputs. Terms also differ between free and paid plans.
Be honest with clients and buyers. If you sell or license content, say what was AI-assisted and don’t promise more ownership than you can support. Brand deals and licensing agreements increasingly ask for this.
Use contracts. Where copyright may be thin, a contract can still control who may use content, for what and for how long. See creator and brand agreements and usage rights.
Protect the brand with a trademark. Copyright covers what you make. A trademark protects the name, handle or logo people use to recognize you, and registration doesn’t depend on how the content behind it was made. An AI-assisted logo raises its own copyright question, so search and file for the trademark.
When others make content for you
When an independent contractor, such as an editor, designer or developer, creates work for you, they generally own the copyright unless they assign it to you in writing. Section 13(4) of the Copyright Act requires an assignment to be in writing and signed. Moral rights, under section 14.1, can’t be assigned, only waived. A contractor agreement should cover both, and should say whether the contractor may use AI tools and must disclose it. See who owns code a contractor writes and moral rights.
For software companies, the same questions arise with AI coding assistants: check the tool’s terms and your open-source exposure, and keep records of how core code was produced.
A short checklist
- Keep a record of how important work was made.
- Read and save the terms of each AI tool you use commercially.
- Make sure contractor agreements include an IP assignment, a moral rights waiver and an AI disclosure term.
- Don’t promise exclusive ownership of raw AI output.
- Register the trademarks your business depends on.
We prepare content licensing agreements, contractor agreements and trademark filings at fixed fees, listed on our fees page. If you’re building a business on AI-assisted content, book a free 15-minute consult.