Apple has filed a request with a federal court to dismiss a class-action lawsuit concerning its use of YouTube videos for training internal AI models. The lawsuit, which was initially filed in April 2026, alleges that the company scraped public videos from YouTube without authorization. Key plaintiffs in the case include Ted Entertainment, which manages the h3h3Productions channels and podcasts, as well as golf-focused channels MrShortGameGolf and Golfholics.

In its response submitted three months after the initial filing, Apple contends that because the plaintiffs posted their content publicly on YouTube, the videos were lawfully accessible. The company argues that the materials were available without passwords, payments, or access controls. Furthermore, Apple asserts that YouTube's existing technological measures do not qualify as effective access controls under section 1201(a) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Consequently, Apple maintains that it acted within the scope of the DMCA and YouTube's Terms of Service, and it is requesting that the court dismiss the suit on the grounds that the plaintiffs failed to state a valid legal claim.

Apple has filed a request with a federal court to dismiss a class-action lawsuit concerning its use of YouTube videos for training internal AI models. The lawsuit, which was initially filed in April 2026, alleges that the company scraped public videos from YouTube without authorization. Key plaintiffs in the case include Ted Entertainment, which manages the h3h3Productions channels and podcasts, as well as golf-focused channels MrShortGameGolf and Golfholics.

In its response submitted three months after the initial filing, Apple contends that because the plaintiffs posted their content publicly on YouTube, the videos were lawfully accessible. The company argues that the materials were available without passwords, payments, or access controls. Furthermore, Apple asserts that YouTube's existing technological measures do not qualify as effective access controls under section 1201(a) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Consequently, Apple maintains that it acted within the scope of the DMCA and YouTube's Terms of Service, and it is requesting that the court dismiss the suit on the grounds that the plaintiffs failed to state a valid legal claim.