In a striking example of the ongoing tensions between artificial intelligence development and content creator rights, Google has found itself in hot water after its NotebookLM AI tool was caught posting what appears to be plagiarized content on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
The Plagiarism Incident
Google’s NotebookLM account recently shared an AI-generated recipe infographic for “Classic Buttery Herb Stuffing” on X, promoting the capabilities of its latest image model, Nano Banana Pro. However, the post quickly drew criticism when X user and blogger Nate Hake pointed out that the infographic bore a striking resemblance to a recipe originally published by food blogger HowSweetEats.
According to screenshots captured before Google deleted the post, the AI-generated infographic closely mirrored both the ingredients list and structure of the original blog content. Hake noted that instead of genuinely “thinking” about how to create the recipe, the AI likely scraped the original content word-for-word and simply reformatted it into an attractive visual presentation.
“Google has crossed the rubicon into publishing AI summaries that do not even link to the source websites at all,” Hake told BleepingComputer. “And they are doing this in clear violation of these websites’ posted terms of use.”
Google’s Response
Faced with mounting criticism on social media, Google quietly removed the offending post from its NotebookLM account. While this addressed the immediate public relations issue, it did little to quell broader concerns about how tech giants are approaching AI content generation and attribution.
Bigger Picture: AI Content Scraping Practices
This incident is not an isolated occurrence but rather part of a wider pattern in the tech industry. Microsoft recently faced similar embarrassment when a Copilot feature failed to work properly in one of its own advertisements, highlighting the gap between AI capabilities and marketing claims.
The core issue lies in how these AI models are trained. Companies typically feed massive datasets of existing content—from websites, books, and other publications—into their AI systems to develop their capabilities. While this process enables impressive results, it raises complex questions about consent, attribution, and compensation for original content creators.
Ethical and Legal Considerations
AI ethics guidelines from organizations like the European Union’s High-Level Expert Group on AI emphasize principles such as transparency, fairness, and respect for human autonomy in AI development. However, these principles often struggle to translate into concrete practices when dealing with vast amounts of scraped content.1
From a legal standpoint, copyright law continues to evolve in response to AI challenges. The U.S. Copyright Office has maintained that works without human authorship—including those entirely generated by AI—are not eligible for copyright protection, but the situation becomes murkier when AI creates content based on copyrighted training materials.2
Monetization Concerns
Adding to the controversy is Google’s apparent plan to monetize its AI-generated content through advertisements. According to BleepingComputer, Google has confirmed it is testing ads within its AI-mode search answers, potentially inserting paid content alongside answers that may be derived from scraped material without direct attribution.
This monetization strategy puts the company in good company—OpenAI has similar plans for its popular ChatGPT service. However, the intersection of unattributed training data and advertisement-supported AI responses presents a particular risk for content creators who may see their work used to generate revenue for tech giants without compensation or credit.
Creator Perspectives and Industry Pushback
Hake further argued that Google’s approach represents a fundamental shift in how the search giant operates: “Whereas Google used to send clicks to websites who put in the hard work of creating content, with AI it increasingly is just scraping content, republishing that content in AI summary form, and sending fewer and fewer clicks to the original creators.”
This sentiment echoes growing frustration among bloggers, journalists, and other online content creators who feel their work is being exploited to train AI systems that could eventually compete with them professionally. Several content creators have begun taking legal action against AI companies, and lawmakers are beginning to consider legislation that would require explicit consent before using copyrighted material for AI training.3
Looking Forward
As AI capabilities continue to advance rapidly, incidents like the NotebookLM recipe plagiarism underscore the urgent need for clearer guidelines around training data usage, attribution standards, and fair compensation for content creators. While AI promises tremendous benefits, its development cannot come at the expense of the human creators whose work forms the foundation of these technological advances.
Companies like Google face a delicate balance between innovation and ethical responsibility. As consumers and creators alike demand greater accountability, the AI industry must develop transparent practices for content sourcing and attribution that respect the rights and efforts of original creators.
Sources
- BleepingComputer – Google deletes X post after getting caught using a ‘stolen’ AI recipe infographic
- European Commission – Ethics guidelines for trustworthy AI
- U.S. Copyright Office – Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices
- Wired – Artists and Authors Sue AI Companies for Copyright Infringement
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