Shuji Sado (佐渡 秀治)
@shujisado.bsky.social
Open Source guy, Chairman of Open Source Group Japan (https://opensource.jp), former CEO of OSDN K.K.(to 2020), ex-VA Linux,、オープンソースとガラパゴスの人、インターネット青年団
I wrote an article about why Japanese IP lawyers’ interpretations of Open Source licensing can sometimes seem subtly off the mark. shujisado.org/2026/07/13/w...
Why Copyright Analysis Alone Is Not Enough for Open Source Licensing
Where Japanese IP Advice Can Miss Contracts, Corporate Practice, and Community Norms I regularly receive requests for advice on the use of licenses, primarily Open Source licenses, and often have o…
shujisado.org
AB 1043 is set to take effect in about 10 months (January 1, 2027). Reading the text literally, I realized it could be interpreted to require an age-bracket signal request even on the first launch of ordinary command-line tools like ls or grep. shujisado.org/2026/03/02/c...
California’s AB 1043 Could Regulate Every Linux Command, and the Open Source World Is Too Quiet
California’s Digital Age Assurance Act (AB 1043), approved by Governor Newsom in October 2025, sets out a statewide age assurance framework for operating systems and app stores. It requires o…
shujisado.org
Do CC licenses reach AI outputs? I’ve summarized how Creative Commons terms may (or may not) apply across the AI workflow, from training data to output. To be clear, CC obligations do not automatically propagate to every output, but misunderstandings here are common. shujisado.org/2026/02/16/t...
Tracing Creative Commons Licenses Across AI: Training Data, Models, Outputs
Copyright issues in AI model training and generated outputs are widely discussed, but less attention is paid to how copyright licenses, the actual mechanism for granting permission, shape these wor…
shujisado.org
【新作】クリエイティブ・コモンズはAIモデルやAI出力にどのように影響を及ぼすか？ CCの学習データがモデルや出力にどう条件が及ぶのか、CCのモデルが出力にどう条件が及ぶのかをまとめた解説。AI開発者だけでなく半分は利用者にもライセンスの影響範囲の示唆になると思う。 shujisado.com/2026/02/16/t... CC側のAIガイドラインを再構成したものに近いが実務的にはなってると思う。非営利条件の発動するタイミングが他のCC条件とは異なること、保守的と法的に必要とみた場合の差が大きいことあたりを押さえればOKという感じ。他のライセンスもCCの延長線上で考えることができる。
クリエイティブ・コモンズはAIモデルやAI出力にどのように影響を及ぼすか？
AIモデルの学習やAI出力の利用において著作権の扱いが論じられることは世界的に多いが、著作権の許諾であるライセ…
shujisado.com
If you prompt an AI to write code, who owns the output? It’s probably not you -- unless you add the "human spark." I wrote about the boundary of copyrightability in AI-generated code, comparing the situation in Japan vs. the US. shujisado.org/2025/12/10/t...
The Boundary of Copyrightability in AI-Generated Code: A Perspective from Japanese and U.S. Law
When GitHub Copilot first appeared, many developers viewed it as an assistive tool for coding. The honest impression of most developers was likely that while it was useful, it was not a tool to whi…
shujisado.org
While the initial uproar from the 2021 launch of GitHub Copilot has subsided, the theory that copyleft licenses like the GPL could extend to AI models trained on them is far from dead.
As the US, EU, and China all strategically promote Open Source AI to secure their own interests (market innovation, risk-based regulation, or state-led influence), Japan cannot afford to be a passive consumer. OSG-JP are urging the Japanese government to act now to avoid technological subordination.
Why Heavy Codes of Conduct are Unnecessary for most Open Source Projects: shujisado.org/2025/09/30/w... A thread on why the trend of complex Codes of Conduct (CoC) might be counterproductive for many Open Source communities. 🧵
Why Heavy Codes of Conduct are Unnecessary for most Open Source Projects
The debate surrounding the Codes of Conduct (CoC) adopted by Open Source projects may be reaching a turning point. In September 2025, a controversy erupted over the governance of RubyGems, a corner…
shujisado.org
I’ve published a piece that traces how US law moved Open Source licenses from permission to a regime where contract and copyright remedies coexist—and explains how today’s violation risks have evolved and intensified, plus what the community should do in response. shujisado.org/2025/09/17/f...
From Permission to Contract: Dual Enforcement and Rising Risk in Open Source Licensing
While a previous article detailed the long-held view in the United States that Open Source licenses were not contracts but “unilateral permissions” — a perspective that gained leg…
shujisado.org
Ever wonder why US law treats Open Source licenses as "permission," but in the EU/Japan they're seen as contracts? The answer is a fascinating Legal Hack in US Copyright Act that hackers used to build the entire Free movement. I wrote a deep dive on this secret history: shujisado.org/2025/07/24/w...
The Legal Hack: Why U.S. Law Sees Open Source as “Permission,” Not a Contract
In Japan, the common view is to treat an Open Source license as a license agreement, or a contract. This is also the case in the EU. However, in the United States—the origin point for almost every …
shujisado.org
QEMU has formally adopted a policy that rejects contributions containing code generated by AI tools. The main reason is that such AI-generated code might not satisfy the requirements of the DCO, on which contributors rely to demonstrate the validity of their patches. shujisado.org/2025/07/02/h...
How Can Open Source Projects Accept AI-Generated Code? — Lessons from QEMU’s Ban Policy
QEMU has formally adopted a policy that rejects contributions containing code generated by AI tools. The core reason is the concern that such AI-generated code cannot satisfy the requirements of th…
shujisado.org
Last week, I discovered by chance that some Debian members are now aiming to bring DebConf to Japan. To raise public awareness, I published a brief article outlining the reasons previous bids were abandoned. shujisado.org/2025/06/23/w...
Why Has DebConf Never Come to Japan? A Look at the Hurdles and Hopes
DebConf is an annual developers’ conference organized by the Debian Project. Although it has a long history, it has never been held in Japan. Is that because Debian GNU/Linux is unpopular here? Not…
shujisado.org
There is no doubt that AI will replace much of what humans do. But so long as we remain foolish, we will still insist on doing things ourselves. shujisado.org/2025/06/20/s...
Solving the Tree Swing Paradox: AI’s Final Boss Is the Human Client
The term AGI is being trumpeted everywhere, but will every facet of human behavior really end up being replaced by AI? I remain skeptical.In software, for example, it already looks as though AI wil…
shujisado.org
I drafted these comments only a few days after the report’s release but left them in my drafts folder when the unseemly political drama unfolded. I have now touched them up slightly and made them public as part of cleaning out that folder. shujisado.org/2025/06/19/u...
U.S. Copyright Office’s AI-Training Report amid Political Turbulence
Last month, the U.S. Copyright Office released a study report on the fair-use implications of using copyrighted works without permission to train AI systems. As is widely known, the Register of Cop…
shujisado.org
It's really interesting. I'm glad to know that high-ranking officials in the Trump administration were fans of Open Source apps. www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...
The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans
U.S. national-security leaders included me in a group chat about upcoming military strikes in Yemen. I didn’t think it could be real. Then the bombs started falling.
theatlantic.com
Although more Japanese companies are gradually setting up OSPO, over the past few years I’ve felt that simply having an OSPO is not enough for JP companies to truly embrace Open Source. I intended to explain my thoughts here, but the explanation grew lengthy, so I wrote a blog post about it instead.
The Missing Piece in Japan’s Open Source Journey: Strong, Visionary Leadership
Back in the 1990s, I was concerned that Japan was beginning to lag behind the United States in software technology. The primary reason for this delay was likely Japan’s heavy focus on hardware at the ...
linkedin.com
I joined the OSI’s early discussions on the Open Source AI Definition. From that experience, I wrote an article (personally) about requiring full training data in Open Source AI. If you’re curious about AI/ML openness, you might find it interesting. shujisado.org/2025/02/18/s...
Should ‘Open Source AI’ Mean Exposing All Training Data?
DeepSeek has had a major global impact. This appears to stem not only from the emergence of a new force in China that threatens the dominance of major U.S. AI vendors, but also from the fact that t…
shujisado.org
【完全保存版】DeepSeekのおかげでAIのオープンソース性について関心が高まっているが、AIがオープンソースであるための要件を考えると非常に面倒な問題もある。最たるものが学習データの完全な公開を必要とするかである。そこで、その点の世界で最も詳しい解説を書いた。 shujisado.com/2025/02/18/n...
AIモデルがオープンソースであるために完全な学習データの公開は必要なのか?
DeepSeekは世界に衝撃を与えているが、その要因としては、中国から米国の巨大AIベンダーを脅かす新たな勢力…
shujisado.com
MetaがLlamaの学習へ海賊版データを利用したとされる件。倫理的にはアレとしてフェアユース抗弁が通るだろうなというのと、仮に違法としても既存モデルの契約としての有効性は残るのだろう。ただ、Llama契約の強力な伝播性から海賊版データが伝播という悪いイメージが付くわな arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
“Torrenting from a corporate laptop doesn’t feel right”: Meta emails unsealed
Meta’s alleged torrenting and seeding of pirated books complicates copyright case.
arstechnica.com
There seems to be a growing number of political messages claiming that “DeepSeek is dangerous,” stemming from the fact that DeepSeek Inc. sends user information to China through its generative AI service. shujisado.org/2025/02/10/d...
DeepSeek in China: A Legal Overview of the 2023 Generative AI Regulations
Since many people in the West have suddenly panicked about the possibility that the DeepSeek app is sending user information somewhere, I would like to offer a brief explanation. In 2023, China ena…
shujisado.org
Among the DeepSeek R1 series, there is also a distilled model that uses Llama as the teacher model. On Hugging Face, that Llama-distilled model appears to be covered by the MIT License, but this is likely a contractual violation.
I’ve long said “Llama isn’t Open Source and is actually dangerous.” Because I'm seen as an OS advocate, many thought I merely disliked Llama’s non-OS status. Worried the real dangers were overlooked, I published two articles addressing those risks. shujisado.org/2025/01/27/t...
The Hidden Traps in Meta’s Llama License
— An Explanation of Llama’s Supposed “Open Source” Status and the Serious Risks of Using Models under the Llama License — It is widely recognized—despite Meta’s CEO persistently promoting the…
shujisado.org
Llama第二弾というより本論公開。AIモデルとしてもシステムとしてもオープンソースではないと前回書いたが、今回は派生を含めてLlamaをAIモデルとして使用することのリスクを列挙している。本邦の派生モデル開発企業だけでなくユーザー企業へも罠が幾つもあると考えている。 shujisado.com/2025/01/20/l...
Llamaライセンス契約を適用するAIモデルを使用する際の多大なリスク
Meta Platforms社のLlamaモデルならびにLlamaライセンス契約(Llama Communit…
shujisado.com
Llamaをオープンソースだと主張する驚き屋の投稿にはなるべく反論しているが、「Llamaはオープンソースではなくリスクも大きい危険なライセンス」と言うと非オープンソースなので危険と主張していると捉える者が多い。なので双方を分け、まず非オープンソース性の解説を書いた shujisado.com/2025/01/15/l...
Llamaライセンス契約のオープンソースへの適合性について
Meta社が開発するAIモデルのシリーズである「Llama」は、高性能で費用対効果が高く、比較的寛容な条件で頒…
shujisado.com
明けましておめでとうございます。 昨年はLinuxデスクトップ元年として益々Linuxの利用拡大が見られた素晴らしい一年でありました。本年も引き続き25年連続25回目ぐらいのLinuxデスクトップ元年をがんばりましょう。
オープンソースライセンスは幾つかの訴訟で契約性を認める判例が出ているが、世界の多くの企業での実務上は著作権の許諾と今も見做している。 しかし、今のAI/LLM関連業界でのライセンスは契約として運用されていることが一般的でもあり、そこへは契約法の概念も入り込む。
開発費を稼ぐ云々でAIモデルの真のオープン化を躊躇う者がいるのは理解するが、Artifex v. HancomにてGPLの契約強制力が認められた現在では、AIモデルにAGPLを適用するという策もあると思う。既にLlamaという超絶伝搬が発生するモデルが割と使われているのにAGPL程度の伝搬性は気にする所ではない
AI法って日本に要るんかね？オープンソース的にはまあ有利にされているとは言え、EU AI規則ってちょっと無理筋だと思うのだよな。パブリシティ権辺りの保護強化、既存法の拡張、リスクベースでの技術ガイドライン強化あたりで十分じゃないかと思うのだよな。
うーん、Llamaライセンスの危険性を全然検討しきれてなかったな。いわゆる合成データにもライセンスが伝搬するから追加学習だけでモデルにLlamaが伝搬するのか。毒饅頭を食わせただけでMetaに即死ボタンを持たせつつ、既存モデルに内包される許諾との矛盾も考慮せなあかんのか。
米国勢だけでなく欧州勢でもオープンソースAIに成り切れない理由の一つがこれ。逆に中国勢がApache 2.0等でモデルを躊躇なく公開できる理由でもある。大した意味もなく利用規約をライセンスへ組み込んでしまう欧米勢と好ましくない使用は革新的利益追求のための謎の力で解決できる中国勢という差がある。
