Insights on AI & Emerging Technologies

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) to generate digital representations of real or fictional people — “AI avatars” — offers new ways to build brands, drive engagement, and grow revenue by accelerating content creation and lowering production costs. It also raises the following important legal considerations.

Adopting an “AI policy” is critical for managing an organization’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. A targeted AI policy can provide clear guardrails that can then be incorporated into organization-wide training but be prepared to pivot quickly as these technologies evolve.

On December 11, the White House issued a sweeping Executive Order (EO) that sets a national policy favoring a minimally burdensome federal framework for artificial intelligence (AI).

Welcome to the December 2025 issue of “As the (Customs and Trade) World Turns,” our monthly newsletter where we compile essential updates from the customs and trade world over the past month. We bring you the most recent and significant insights in an accessible format, concluding with our main takeaways — aka “And the Fox Says…” — on what you need to know.

In a Law360 feature published ahead of the US Supreme Court’s oral argument in Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment, AI & Emerging Technologies Industry Group Co-Leader Danielle W. Bulger was quoted, discussing how the justices’ approach could reset how courts evaluate secondary copyright liability for internet service providers and other platforms. With a $1 billion verdict on the line, the anticipated decision is expected to influence how companies design and deploy products that enable large-scale online sharing.

On December 1, the US Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case that could reshape secondary copyright liability for internet service providers (ISPs) and other network operators.

AI, Metaverse & Blockchain Co-Leader Danielle Bulger will be a featured speaker at the 2025 BESLA Conference, joining industry leaders for a dynamic discussion entitled, Code, Content, and Consequences: The New Challenges AI Presents in Entertainment & Advertising. This timely panel will delve into the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on the creative and advertising sectors, examining both the opportunities and risks that AI brings to the forefront.

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 53, “The Transparency in Frontier Intelligence Act” (TFAIA), establishing new AI safety and transparency obligations for certain AI developers.

Partner Marylee Jenkins will speak at the 2025 WTR Live: Brand Strategy Summit USA in New York on October 22, 2025.

Partner D. Reed Freeman was quoted on how the massive amount of data artificial intelligence (AI) models need is potentially undermining one of privacy advocates’ key goals: data minimization.

A significant Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) decision authored by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) leadership, including the new USPTO Director John A. Squires, signals the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) innovations to the US economy and paves the way for patenting of AI and machine learning (ML) technologies.

Anthropic PBC entered into a proposed class-wide settlement that would resolve Bartz et al. v. Anthropic PBC, No. 3:24-cv-05417 (N.D. Cal.), a high-profile copyright infringement action challenging the company’s use of millions of books to train its Claude large language models.

Chairman Anthony Lupo and Fashion Group Co-Leader Michelle Mancino Marsh discussed the complexities and intellectual property (IP) concerns arising from the expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) in the fashion and retail industry. “AI will be a sea change not just for the fashion industry but for society as a whole,” Tony said.

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued new guidance to clarify and improve the evaluation of patent eligibility for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) inventions in order to foster innovation and patenting of these cutting-edge technologies.

On July 31, 2025, ArentFox Schiff hosted the HGPII Annual Best Practices Forum, one of the group purchasing sector’s premier training and leadership development conferences.

The Trump Administration has proposed implementing a broad range of regulatory changes in order to promote the development of artificial intelligence (AI) in the United States.

As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly embedded in health care, from diagnostics and clinical decision support to administrative automation, health care providers are increasingly reliant on AI vendors to deliver accurate, safe, and compliant solutions, subject to applicable regulatory requirements and standards of care.

As the pace of advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) innovations continues to accelerate, companies from various technology and industry sectors are turning to ArentFox Schiff’s Patent group for guidance in protecting their intellectual property (IP) and patenting their cutting-edge AI technologies.

In Law360’s 2025 midyear report, Partner Danielle Bulger was quoted on recent, pivotal copyright rulings by US district courts, including regarding implications of the affirmative defense of fair use in the context of AI model training, and copyright litigation strategy.

In one of the first substantive decisions analyzing whether the use of copyrighted works to train large language models (LLMs) for generative artificial intelligence (AI) services is infringing or a fair use, Judge William Alsup issued a split decision in his summary judgment order. See Bartz et al. v. Anthropic PBC, No. 3:24-cv-05417 (N.D. Cal. Aug 19, 2024).

The Walt Disney Company and Universal City Studios Productions are among the latest plaintiffs to bring a lawsuit against an artificial intelligence (AI) developer.

​Join ODSC and ArentFox Schiff’s Michael Scarpati, Ph.D. for a deep dive into the fascinating world of AI at Beyond Automation: Exploring Agentic AI Together.

On April 25, purchasers of Nike non-fungible tokens (NFTs) filed a class action complaint in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York against the sportswear giant alleging that the December 2024 shutdown of RTFKT constituted a “brazen rug pull,” resulting in significant monetary losses for the plaintiffs.

Partners Matthew Berlin and Michael Fainberg of ArentFox Schiff will speak at the 2025 AI Governance & Strategy Summit – New York on May 7, 2025.

Join ArentFox Schiff Partner Danielle Bulger at the Copyright Society’s 2025 Annual Meeting on June 6, 2025.