How does Black Squirrel use GenAI?
Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) can be an amazing tool—you can easily have ChatGPT write an article like this in less than 30 seconds and post it straight to your website before breakfast. But, did you know that a GenAI output that does not contain human authorship is not protected by copyright laws? This is not ideal for any brand or individual looking to foster a unique idea.
“The outputs of generative AI can be protected by copyright only where a human author has determined sufficient expressive elements.”
So, as amazing as GenAI can be for many tasks in our daily lives, it’s worthwhile having a human at the helm who knows what they're doing when it comes to creating writing and marketing.
If Black Squirrel uses AI during a project, we draw a clear line where GenAI’s help ends and a human creates intellectual property for you that is professional, original, and copyrightable. Black Squirrel also takes a strong stance on advocating and practicing proper GenAI usage practices, so that your ideas, proprietary business information, and content remain protected.
Why Black Squirrel has a GenAI Policy
Plain and simple, Black Squirrel has put a GenAI policy in place because of how the technology works. We want you to feel confident that data privacy and intellectual property (IP) integrity are top priority when working with us. Even though GenAI can be a great tool for saving our clients’ time and money on certain tasks, Black Squirrel limits its use for the following reasons.
“ChatGPT and other tools like it are trained on large amounts of publicly available data. They are not designed to be compliant with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other copyright laws.”
Gartner explains: “ChatGPT and other tools like it are trained on large amounts of publicly available data. They are not designed to be compliant with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other copyright laws.”
Gartner goes on to share that there is a list of risks at play when using GenAI for business because of the publicly available data it leverages to create its outputs. Top three risks you should pay attention to:
Accuracy: GenAI systems sometimes produce inaccurate and fabricated answers.
Intellectual property: There are currently no verifiable data governance and protection assurances regarding confidential business information. Users should assume that any data or queries they enter into the ChatGPT and its competitors will become public information, risking IP exposure.
Copyright infringement: On the flipside of No. 2, there is the added risk that you’re infringing on someone else’s copyrighted works.
Black Squirrel does not put intellectual property into GenAI
First, the most important usage limit Black Squirrel has in place is our clear definition on what does and doesn’t go into a GenAI query. Black Squirrel will never input a client’s data, content, or any other intellectual property into a generative AI system.
If Black Squirrel uses generative AI tools during our work together, queries are solely driven by information that is generic and already publicly available. Any information that the GenAI tool provides is vetted for accuracy and project alignment before any next steps.
When (and if) Black Squirrel uses GenAI
Before the start of any project, we believe it’s important to discuss AI and provide full transparency regarding our usage practices. We prefer not to use GenAI tools during our creative process, but if a client is interested in including it Black Squirrel limits its use to a project’s early stages. This ensures that the final work that the client receives from us is original and their intellectual property to own. Here’s what we mean by early stages:
1. Brainstorming ideas
Black Squirrel may ask a GenAI system for ideas that can be part of a client’s brainstorming discussions. The goal is to provide thought-provoking ideas that the client and Black Squirrel can build on.
2. Saving time on research
One of the best ways GenAI can assist on a project is cutting down on time it takes to research topics. Any research information acquired by the use of GenAI will be vetted and confirmed.
3. Strategizing a first draft
GenAI can provide helpful insights on interesting ways to organize a piece of writing. If Black Squirrel is using GenAI for your project, this is where it ends. We will take it to the finish line from here.