News Corp, the media conglomerate owned by Rupert Murdoch, has issued a stark warning to Donald Trump, claiming that artificial intelligence is 'cannibalizing' the content of his books, including The Art of the Deal. In a statement accompanying its fourth-quarter earnings report, the company said that while the president's books continue to sell well, they are 'being consumed by AI engines which profit from his thoughts by cannibalizing his concepts, thus undermining future sales'.
News Corp owns HarperCollins, which has published three of Trump's books, though his best-known title was published by Random House. The company's statement drew a parallel with Trump's own catchphrase, declaring: 'Suddenly, The Art of the Deal has become The Art of the Steal.'
The warning comes amid a broader legal battle between media outlets and AI companies over the use of copyrighted content to train models. In October, Dow Jones and the New York Post sued Perplexity AI over copyright claims, following a similar lawsuit by the New York Times against OpenAI. News Corp CEO Robert Thomson said the company is in 'advanced negotiations with several AI companies', adding: 'It's clear that many of them have come to recognize that the purchase of intellectual property is as important as the acquisition of semiconductors.'
The statement also coincides with a tense period between News Corp and the White House. Trump has sued the Wall Street Journal over a report that he sent Jeffrey Epstein an intimate birthday message with a sexually suggestive drawing. The newspaper has asked a judge to dismiss the case. Murdoch, who also owns Fox News, was once friendly with Trump but relations soured during the president's third campaign.
News Corp's earnings beat expectations, driven by a rise in digital subscriptions from Dow Jones. The company also announced plans to launch a sister tabloid to the New York Post in California in early 2026.
