A German Court Just Told Google: Your AI's Words Are Your Words. Here's Why You Should Be Paying Attention.
Nerd Lawyer, AI Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, AI Curtis Wadsworth

A German Court Just Told Google: Your AI's Words Are Your Words. Here's Why You Should Be Paying Attention.

Two Munich-based publishers discovered that Google's AI Overviews — the AI-generated summaries that now sit at the top of search results — had been telling users they were running scams, operating subscription traps, and engaging in "dubious business practices." The AI had confused them with entirely different companies. None of the claims appeared in any of the sources Google's AI cited. The AI made them up. Google ignored a cease-and-desist letter. The publishers sued. The court didn't hesitate. It issued a temporary injunction and classified Google's AI Overviews as Google's own content — not a summary of third-party sources, not a neutral aggregation, not a search result. Google's words. Google's liability.

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Three Years Later, The Copyright Office Is Still Wrong (And Now Founders Are Paying For It)
Nerd Lawyer, AI, Copyright Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, AI, Copyright Curtis Wadsworth

Three Years Later, The Copyright Office Is Still Wrong (And Now Founders Are Paying For It)

In 2024, I wrote that the Copyright Office's position on AI-generated works was flawed and would not survive contact with the actual Burrow-Giles test. Three years later, the Office has hardened that position into formal policy, the D.C. Circuit has blessed it, and the Supreme Court has refused to look at it. The reasoning is still wrong for the same reasons. What's new is who's paying for it: the AI-native founders building real businesses on tools the Office now tells them they can't own the output of — and a constitutional bargain that's being broken on both ends.

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The Founders Who Built America                               Are Now Afraid to Leave It
Nerd Lawyer, Startup, Immigrant Founders Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, Startup, Immigrant Founders Curtis Wadsworth

The Founders Who Built America Are Now Afraid to Leave It

There's a quiet crisis unfolding at the intersection of immigration policy and American innovation — and most of the founders caught in it are too afraid to speak publicly about it. Startup founders who have lived in the U.S. for years won't leave the country to see their family because they don't trust what happens at the border on the way back. That is the situation in 2025 for a staggering share of the founders powering American innovation. If you're a non-citizen founder navigating this landscape, or you're investing in companies where this is a live issue, here are some options.

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A “Country of Geniuses in a Datacenter”? Let’s Talk About What Genius Actually Is
Nerd Lawyer, AI Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, AI Curtis Wadsworth

A “Country of Geniuses in a Datacenter”? Let’s Talk About What Genius Actually Is

One of the most striking phrases in Dario Amodei’s essay The Adolescence of Technology is his description of advanced AI as “a country of geniuses in a datacenter.”

What we are building in datacenters is not a country of geniuses—but a country of extremely powerful tools that could concentrate unprecedented capability in few hands. The risks are real, but they're different: not millions of independent minds plotting discoveries, but rather the danger of mistaking fluency for understanding, speed for wisdom, and pattern-mastery for the embodied intelligence that actually creates new knowledge.

The danger is not that AI is too human. It’s that we mistake fluency, speed, and pattern mastery for the kind of intelligence that actually creates new knowledge.

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The Hidden Economic Crisis: Supreme Court Ruling Enables $430+ Billion in                                 Congressional Funding Impoundment
Nerd Lawyer, Supreme Court, Jobs Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, Supreme Court, Jobs Curtis Wadsworth

The Hidden Economic Crisis: Supreme Court Ruling Enables $430+ Billion in Congressional Funding Impoundment

On September 26, 2025, the Supreme Court granted emergency relief to the Trump administration in Department of State v. AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition, effectively allowing the executive branch to withhold $4 billion in congressionally appropriated foreign aid. While this decision may seem narrow, the administration is currently blocking at least $430 billion in congressionally allocated funds across numerous federal programs using the same legal theory. Thus, this decision is the tip of an economic iceberg that undermines fundamental constitutional principles at a time when the U.S. economy is already showing signs of weakness and threatens hundreds of thousands of American jobs.

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How Ukraine’s Lithium Reserves Could Determine the Future of AI and Energy Storage
Nerd Lawyer, AI, Battery Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, AI, Battery Curtis Wadsworth

How Ukraine’s Lithium Reserves Could Determine the Future of AI and Energy Storage

With an estimated 500,000 tonnes of lithium, Ukraine's reserves are valued at approximately $15 trillion. Supporting Ukraine is not merely a matter of foreign policy but a strategic imperative for the United States. Ensuring U.S. access to critical minerals like lithium is essential for maintaining economic stability, advancing technological innovation, and preserving geopolitical influence.

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The Future of the USPTO: Workforce Disruptions, Policy Shifts, and the Growing Backlog
Nerd Lawyer, Patenting Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer, Patenting Curtis Wadsworth

The Future of the USPTO: Workforce Disruptions, Policy Shifts, and the Growing Backlog

Holding a patent is not merely a legal formality—it is a strategic asset that significantly enhances a company’s ability to secure funding and drive growth.all begins with an idea. While the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) faces unprecedented uncertainty as conflicting mandates on telework, hiring freezes, and return-to-office requirements disrupt operations, patent holders should expect more delays in patent prosecution as the USPTO backlog increases.

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The Misguided Stance of the Copyright Office on AI-Generated Works
Nerd Lawyer Curtis Wadsworth Nerd Lawyer Curtis Wadsworth

The Misguided Stance of the Copyright Office on AI-Generated Works

The U.S. Copyright Office has taken the position that AI image generating tools, like MidJourney, (not the user using the tool) are the authors of the images that are created. The best example we have is the case of  Kristina Kashtanova’s graphic novel, Zarya of the Dawn, which was partially generated using AI. The Copyright Office’s reasoning is flawed, and the issue of who the author is when using AI tools needs careful examination.

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