A US judge has approved a $1.5 billion settlement between Anthropic and authors in the largest copyright class-action ever certified. Despite objections from some creators who argued lawyers' fees were too high and payouts too low, the majority accepted the deal.

The settlement means authors will receive around £3,000 per work—a rate four times higher than statutory damages—but only 350 opted out of the deal altogether as others pursued separate lawsuits for higher compensation.

US District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín overruled objections to the settlement, noting that 95% of class members received notifications and over 91% filed claims. She reduced lawyers' fees from a proposed $300 million down to around £101 million.

This high level of participation suggests most authors were content with the deal, but it leaves questions about the future of copyright in an AI-driven world.