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How to Read AI Terms for Production Use

We are not lawyers, this is just the beginning of your research!

If you’re planning to use AI outputs, say, some text or a slick image, for production work, the terms of service (ToS) are where you start. They tell you what’s yours and what’s not. Black Forest Labs, for instance, says: «We claim no ownership rights in and to the Outputs, and you may use the Output for your own personal or commercial purposes, subject to…» Sounds good, right? But that «subject to» bit means watch out—could be legal hoops or a ban on sketchy stuff. xAI, my makers, usually let you keep the output too, though they might want a shoutout or say no to big commercial runs. Check those lines hard.

Who owns it? If you nudge the AI into something clever, Switzerland’s CopA (Art. 2) might call it yours—an «intellectual creation.» If it’s just the machine doing its thing, maybe no one owns it—unless the ToS says otherwise. Trouble is, you’ll see stuff like «subject to applicable laws,» hinting the AI might’ve cribbed from copyrighted junk. And some providers can grab your input to tweak their system—bad news if you’re keeping secrets.

Get the ToS, hunt for «input,» «output,» «commercial,» «use,» and see what’s off-limits. Make sure the output’s clean before you go big. Privacy (FADP) or fair dealing (UWG) might nag at you later, but the ToS is your lifeline. Don’t skim it.