Artificial Intelligence and Copyright: Who Owns AI-Generated Content Under Ukrainian Law?

Until 2023, Ukrainian legal scholars debated at length who could claim authorship of content generated by artificial intelligence. The new Law of Ukraine “On Copyright and Related Rights” – in force since 1 January 2023 – settled this question legislatively. Yet in practice, misconceptions persist. This article answers the most common questions about copyright in AI-generated content under current Ukrainian law.

📋 Legal basis: Law of Ukraine “On Copyright and Related Rights” No. 2811-IX, adopted 1 December 2022, in force from 1 January 2023. This law replaced the 1993 Act and aligned Ukrainian copyright law with EU directives, including the introduction of a sui generis right for AI-generated objects.

1. What Counts as AI-Generated Content?

Under the Law, AI-generated content is defined as an object that: (a) differs from existing similar objects, and (b) was produced through the operation of a computer program without the direct participation of a natural person in its creation. The Law refers to this as a “non-original object generated by a computer program.”

Works created by natural persons using computer tools do not fall into this category – even if those tools include AI-assisted features.

The distinction matters in practice and can be illustrated with two scenarios:

• Human-created work using AI tools: A person uses the features of a software application to independently create an image, logo, or design – selecting, adjusting, and directing the output creatively. This is not AI-generated content under the Law; it is a work authored by the human.
• AI-generated object: A person writes a prompt and an AI model generates an image or text based on that prompt – even if the person refines the output through several further prompts. Because the natural person did not directly participate in creating the object itself, the result is an AI-generated object under the Law.

⚠️ The prompt alone is not authorship: Writing a text prompt, no matter how detailed or iteratively refined, does not constitute direct participation in the creation of the object under Ukrainian law. The resulting output is treated as a non-original object generated by a computer program – not a work of human authorship.

2. Who Holds Rights in AI-Generated Content?

The Law identifies two categories of rights holders who may hold intellectual property rights in AI-generated content:

• Persons holding economic rights in the computer program: the authors of the AI program, their heirs, and persons to whom the authors or their heirs have transferred (assigned) economic rights in the program.
• Lawful users of the computer program: persons who have a valid licence or other legal basis to use the AI program.

The Law adds that the allocation of IP rights in the generated content may also be governed by the terms of the relevant agreement – that is, the terms of service or licence agreement for the specific AI tool used.

Practical rule: check the terms of service

The answer to “who owns the AI-generated content?” in any specific case depends on the terms of use of the AI tool. Consider ChatGPT: OpenAI’s Terms of Use state that, as between the user and OpenAI, the user retains ownership of their inputs and owns the outputs generated, with OpenAI assigning to the user all rights it may hold in those outputs (to the extent permitted by applicable law).

For any other AI tool, the same principle applies: review the terms of service before generating content, and determine on that basis who holds the resulting IP rights – and whether those terms are acceptable for your intended use.

⚠️ Third-party IP is a hard limit: IP rights in AI-generated content arise only if no third-party copyright or other IP rights were infringed during the generation process. If a person uploads a third-party image (painting, design, photograph) to an AI tool and prompts it to modify that image, no IP rights arise in the output – and the rights of the original rights holder are infringed. This can give rise to liability for the person who initiated the generation.

3. What Rights Arise – and for How Long?

AI-generated objects are not protected by “classic” copyright. They are instead protected by a sui generis right – a special-category right distinct from ordinary authorship. This has two important consequences:

• No moral (personal non-property) rights arise. In classical copyright, the author holds both economic rights and personal non-property rights (such as the right to be identified as the author). For AI-generated objects, only economic rights arise – the right to use the content, to permit others to use it, and to prohibit unauthorised use.
• Shorter protection term. Classical copyright lasts for the author’s lifetime plus 70 years. The sui generis right in AI-generated content expires 25 years from 1 January of the year following the year in which the content was generated.

	Classic copyright (human author)
Moral/personal rights	Yes – vest in the author
Economic rights	Yes
Term	Life of author + 70 years
Rights holder	Author (and assignees)
Governed by	Law + contract

Conclusion

The key practical takeaway: if you use AI-generated content and want to avoid IP disputes, the terms of service of the relevant AI tool are your primary reference point. They determine who holds the IP rights in the output – and whether your intended use is authorised at all.

Understanding the legal framework – and applying it before generating and deploying AI content – is the most effective way to manage copyright risk in an environment where AI-generated content is now part of everyday business.