AI book chat tools let readers ask questions, but authors raise copyright concerns

New AI reading tools are letting users ask questions about books and audiobooks while they read or listen, but the technology is raising disputes over author consent, licensing and payment.

The tools pair an e-book or audiobook with an AI chatbot. Companies cited by AFP include Sinai.ai, French startup My Smart Book, Amazon’s Audible and Kindle, ElevenLabs, iChatbook, Myreader, Google’s Gemini Notebook and BookWorm AI.

Sinai.ai chief executive Ahmed Kamel said his platform, now in testing, allows users to treat a book “as if it is a living object.” Sinai.ai and My Smart Book say their chatbots draw only on the text of the book, without outside information.

Audible has launched a feature called “Ask a Question,” which lets listeners ask about the audiobook they are hearing and then continue listening. Amazon’s Kindle has a similar tool called “Ask this Book,” described as an assistant for questions about plot and characters.

The central issue is who gives permission and who gets paid. Sinai.ai says it only uses public-domain books or works approved by an author, estate or publisher. It also says it has built an “AI rights” system to pay authors and publishers when their work is used by a chatbot.

Other services take different approaches. iChatbook says it extracts ideas and explains them without directly quoting the book. The article says some tools allow users to upload books without screening for copyright.

Kamel said Sinai.ai is in active communication with almost four of the five largest US publishers and has signed with many publishers. AFP said none of the Big Five publishers responded to questions about their AI plans.

The Authors Guild criticised Amazon’s “Ask this Book” tool in December, saying it was not licensed, brought in no new income and did not let publishers and authors opt out or opt in.