IP Law Daily, COPYRIGHT—N.D. Cal.: Author alleges Adobe used pirated books to train AI software, (Feb 11, 2026)

By Brian Craig, J.D.

The proposed class-action lawsuit alleges that Adobe used datasets known to contain pirated books to develop its small language models.

An author of several books has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against Adobe, Inc. in the federal district court in San Jose, California, alleging that the software company engaged in direct copyright infringement by using datasets known to contain pirated books to train its artificial intelligence (AI) software. The suit filed by author Arthur Kleiner alleges that Adobe trained its SlimLM small language models (SLMs), which is AI software optimized for document assistance tasks on mobile devices, by using books sourced from the online pirate “shadow library” Bibliotik (Kleiner v. Adobe Inc., No. 5:26-cv-01218-SVK (N.D. Cal. Feb. 9, 2026)).

Arthur Kleiner is the author of many books, including The Age of Heretics: Heroes, Outlaws, and the Forerunners of Corporate Change. Kleiner owns the registered copyright for the books. The author, a resident of New York, filed a putative class-action lawsuit against Adobe alleging copyright infringement. Adobe maintains its headquarters in San Jose, California where the case was filed.

Direct copyright infringement. The complaint alleges a single claim for direct copyright infringement against Adobe. The author alleges that Adobe used authors’ books and written works in order to train its SlimLM small language models (SLMs), which is AI software optimized for document assistance tasks on mobile devices. The complaint alleges that Adobe used SlimPajama, an altered version of “RedPajama,” that contains works of various authors. In October 2020, the Books3 dataset, consisting of approximately 196,640 books sourced from the online pirate “shadow library” Bibliotik, was made available online to provide AI developers with access to high-quality training data. The Books3 dataset included Kleiner’s copyrighted books without permission in violation of the U.S. Copyright Act, according to the complaint. The author asserts that Adobe has and continues to benefit commercially from the copyright infringement by securing lucrative contracts with enterprise customers for the use of its AI software, including through the SlimLM AI platform, and through deploying such AI software through its suite of Adobe branded products. The complaint alleges that copyrighted books are well known among developers of AI models to be high-quality data for training SLMs.

Fair use. The complaint contends that the use by Adobe to train its AI software does not constitute fair use. The complaint addresses each of the fair use defense factors. The author alleges that the purpose and character of Adobe’s use is strictly commercial and not transformative. The author contends that the nature of work is highly creative and is therefore entitled to broader protection. As to the portion of the work used factor in the fair use analysis, the complaint alleges the book was copied in its entirety to take both the whole and the heart of the work. Finally, as to the impact on the market, the complaint alleges that Adobe’s use leads to market harm through the loss of book sales and licensing to compete with free versions of the works.

Relief sought. The complaint seeks certification of the case as a class-action lawsuit based on the numerous works that were copied by various authors and the common claims asserted. The author seeks statutory and other damages for violations of the copyrights. In addition, the author seeks a court order requiring destruction of the infringing products, injunctive relief, and attorney fees.

The Case is No. 5:26-cv-01218-SVK.

Judge: Keulen, S.

Attorneys: L. Timothy Fisher (Bursor & Fisher, P.A.) for Arthur Kleiner.

Companies: Adobe Inc.

Cases: Copyright AINews TechnologyInternet CaliforniaNews