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Businessing LLC v Runway AI Inc

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Businessing LLC, doing business as Ali Spagnola, v. Runway AI, Inc. is a class action lawsuit filed on February 27, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Los Angeles), alleging violations of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) for unauthorized scraping of YouTube videos to train Runway AI's generative models.[1][2] The case is part of a broader wave of litigation targeting AI companies' harvesting of publicly available content without authorization.

Parties

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Plaintiff

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Businessing LLC, a California-based media company operating the YouTube channel @alispagnola, owned by Ali Spagnola. The channel has over 2.59 million subscribers and has generated millions of views. Spagnola creates comedy, music, and fitness content.[3]

Defendant

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Runway AI, Inc., a New York-based AI company developing generative video models including Gen-3 Alpha. Runway is reportedly valued in the multi-billion-dollar range.[4]

Allegations

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The complaint alleges Runway AI violated 17 U.S.C. Section 1201(a)(1) by circumventing YouTube's technological protection measures (TPMs) to scrape and download over 1,200 of Ali Spagnola's copyrighted videos.[5]

Circumvention of Technological Protection Measures

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YouTube employs several technical measures to prevent bulk downloading, including:

  • Rate limiting on video downloads
  • IP blocking for suspicious activity
  • Terms of Service prohibiting scraping and automated downloads

The complaint alleges Runway deliberately bypassed these measures using:

  • Rotating IP addresses to evade detection
  • Virtual machines and cloud infrastructure
  • Automated tools to mass-download millions of copyrighted videos[6]

Training Dataset Use

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The scraped videos--including Spagnola's content--allegedly served as training data for Runway's Gen-3 and other generative video models capable of producing text-to-video and image-to-video outputs. The lawsuit claims this provided Runway with commercial gain while violating creators' exclusive rights.[7]

Willful Conduct

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The complaint emphasizes that Runway, as a sophisticated AI company, made conscious choices to circumvent YouTube's TPMs rather than pursue lawful licensing, depriving creators of control over their works and the ability to monetize their content.[8]

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  1. DMCA Section 1201(a)(1) Anti-Circumvention -- Unlawful circumvention of technological measures controlling access to copyrighted works[9]

Class Action

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The case is filed as a class action on behalf of "independent YouTube content creators whose videos were scraped by Runway AI." The class is defined by common questions including:

  • Runway's circumvention methods
  • Willfulness of the conduct
  • Class-wide injury to creators whose content was taken without authorization[10]

Relief Sought

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Plaintiff seeks:

  • Statutory damages under the DMCA
  • Injunctive relief
  • Restitution of profits
  • Attorneys' fees and costs
  • Other appropriate remedies[11]
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Businessing LLC's suit is part of a cluster of similar DMCA cases targeting Runway AI:

  • Ace Cam, Inc. v. Runway AI, Inc. -- Filed February 18, 2026, in the Southern District of New York (1:26-cv-01698). This case has been consolidated with Businessing LLC's action.[12][13]
  • David Vance Gardner v. Runway AI, Inc. -- Filed February 23, 2026; consolidated with Businessing LLC and Ace Cam actions[14][13]

Case Consolidation

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The Ace Cam, Inc. (d/b/a Random Golf Club) action, filed February 18, 2026, in the Southern District of New York, has been consolidated with the Businessing LLC (d/b/a Ali Spagnola) action.[13] Both cases allege that Runway AI circumvented YouTube's technological protection measures to scrape video content for training its generative models, and the consolidation enables coordinated pretrial proceedings.

Procedural History

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Date Event
February 18, 2026 Ace Cam, Inc. v. Runway AI filed in S.D.N.Y.
February 23, 2026 Gardner v. Runway AI filed
February 27, 2026 Businessing LLC v. Runway AI filed in C.D. Cal.

Significance

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The case highlights the growing tension between:

  • AI companies' use of publicly available web content for training
  • Creators' rights under the DMCA's anti-circumvention provisions
  • Platform terms of service as a basis for liability

The DMCA claim differs from traditional copyright infringement claims by focusing on the *method* of acquisition (circumventing TPMs) rather than the *use* of content post-acquisition. This legal theory avoids some fair use defenses while potentially exposing AI companies to statutory damages.[15]

Case Information

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Item Details
Full Caption Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc.
Court U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
Filed February 27, 2026
Cause of Action DMCA Section 1201(a)(1) anti-circumvention
Class Action Yes

See Also

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References

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  1. ↑ Mishcon de Reya - AI IP Policy Tracker
  2. ↑ Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc. - Complaint
  3. ↑ Law360: Another YouTuber Sues Runway AI
  4. ↑ Mishcon de Reya - AI IP Policy Tracker
  5. ↑ Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc. - Complaint
  6. ↑ Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc. - Complaint
  7. ↑ Law360: Another YouTuber Sues Runway AI
  8. ↑ Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc. - Complaint
  9. ↑ Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc. - Complaint
  10. ↑ Businessing LLC v. Runway AI, Inc. - Complaint
  11. ↑ Mishcon de Reya - AI IP Policy Tracker
  12. ↑ Law360: Another YouTuber Sues Runway AI
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Benesch AI Reporter, April 2026
  14. ↑ Law360: Another YouTuber Sues Runway AI
  15. ↑ Copyright Alliance - Copyright Stories February 2026
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