IP Law Daily, COPYRIGHT NEWS: 3-D model creator files class action suits against technology companies, (Mar 27, 2026)

By Kevin M. Finson, J.D.

The four complaints allege that Roblox, Meta, Microsoft, and Nvidia removed copyright management information and distributed works knowing the information had been removed in violation of the DMCA.

Austin Beaulier, a creator of 3-D models, has filed lawsuits on behalf of himself and others similarly situated in four separate suits against Roblox Corporation, Meta Platforms, Inc., Microsoft Corporation, and Nvidia Corporation in the U.S. District Courts for the Northern District of California and for the Western District of Washington. Gardner alleged that each defendant had ignored or removed copyright management information from 3-D models published under Creative Commons licenses and had knowingly distributed or used those models in the training of AI programs without attribution (Beaulier v. Meta Platforms, Inc., No. 3:26-cv-02632 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 26, 2026); Beaulier v. NVIDIA Corp., No. 3:26-cv-02647 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 26, 2026); Beaulier v. Roblox Corp., No. 3:26-cv-02642-LJC (N.D. Cal. Mar. 26, 2026); Beaulier v. Microsoft Corp., No. 2:26-cv-01031 (W.D. Wash. Mar. 26, 2026)).

Beaulier alleges he is a professional 3-D artist, developer, and visual effects creator and that he, along with many others, published and distributed 3-D models through online platforms including Sketchfab, CGTrader, Thingiverse, and Polycam. He claimed that his works, among others, were then included in Objaverse-XL and related datasets which the various defendants used to train their respective AI systems.

He further alleged that the works on each platform were governed by different variations of Creative Commons licenses, including some which required attribution and some which prohibited commercial use. According to the complaints, these individual, per-work licenses, along with “No-AI” tags meant to prohibit use in training AI services, amounted to copyright management information protected by the Digital Millenium Copyright Act. The use of the various works in the Objaverse-XL database by each defendant allegedly stripped the works of this information, causing financial harm to Beaulier and other creators because their livelihoods depend on recognition of the works they produce.

Beaulier requests that the cases each continue as class action suits and seeks declarative relief, statutory and actual damages, injunctive relief, and attorney fees.

The Cases are No. 3:26-cv-02632, No. 3:26-cv-02647, No. 3:26-cv-02642-LJC, and No. 2:26-cv-01031.

Judges: Kim, S.; Spero, J.; Cisneros, L.

Attorneys: Michael Anthony Acciavatti, William J. Edelman, Gary Michael Klinger, and Douglas H. Sanders (Milberg LLC) for Austin Beaulier.

Companies: Meta Platforms, Inc; NVIDIA Corp.; Roblox Corp.; Microsoft Corp.

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