Reddit DMCA lawsuit over AI scraping survives dismissal bid

A Reddit DMCA lawsuit against web-scraping company SerpApi will largely continue after a federal judge declined to dismiss core claims that SerpApi and Perplexity AI conspired to scrape Reddit content through Google search results. U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer ruled Friday that Reddit had made a plausible early-stage case that SerpApi sold a tool used to get around Google access controls and that Perplexity AI paid for it.

The ruling keeps alive a closely watched fight over how platforms can use copyright law and anti-circumvention rules against AI data collection. Reddit is trying to show that content appearing in Google search results was still protected by a technological measure, and that SerpApi and Perplexity AI bypassed that measure to reach copyrighted Reddit material.

What is the Reddit DMCA lawsuit about?

Reddit alleges that SerpApi helped Perplexity AI obtain Reddit material from Google search results in ways that avoided Google’s anti-scraping controls. The relevant part of the DMCA concerns technology that controls access to copyrighted works, so the case turns on whether Google’s controls count, whether Reddit authorized their use for Reddit content, and whether the defendants bypassed them.

Engelmayer found that Reddit’s allegations were detailed enough to proceed into discovery. He said Reddit plausibly claimed that its licensing arrangement with Google barred certain uses of Reddit data and that those restrictions were undermined by scraping activity routed through Google results.

That finding contrasts with a recent loss for Google in a related case against SerpApi. In that matter, another court found that Google had not shown that rights holders such as Reddit authorized Google to stop scraping of protected content. Google has said it plans to amend its complaint.

Engelmayer said Reddit’s case was different because Reddit pointed to specific licensing terms with Google rather than making a broad assertion about licenses to display copyrighted content. He also rejected the idea that a licensing partner would need to revise an agreement each time a company deployed a new security measure.

Why Reddit says deleted posts matter

Reddit’s theory is tied to user deletions as well as licensing revenue. Reddit told the court that partners such as Google agree to remove posts that Reddit identifies after users delete them. Reddit said millions of posts are deleted each month, and argued that unauthorized scraping can leave removed content available inside Perplexity AI’s answer engine.

Reddit claims that result damages both its reputation and its business. If Reddit ultimately wins, the company could strengthen its hand in pushing AI companies and data intermediaries into licensing deals rather than informal or indirect collection.

Reddit is seeking multiple injunctions. It wants the court to block SerpApi and Perplexity AI from accessing Reddit and Google websites, stop circumvention of Google SearchGuard, and prevent use of previously scraped data.

A Reddit spokesperson said the ruling moved the company closer to holding “bad actors accountable,” adding that Reddit supports responsible access to public content but opposes companies that bypass its protections and profit from Reddit communities without permission.

What SerpApi can still argue

The case is not decided on the merits. Engelmayer noted that SerpApi and Perplexity AI may still show through discovery that Reddit did not authorize Google to protect Reddit content in search results. The opinion also suggested that SerpApi could gain ground if it proves that all publicly available content in Google search results falls outside Copyright Act protection.

SerpApi and Perplexity AI did win a narrower part of the motion. The court dismissed Reddit’s unjust enrichment and unfair competition claims, finding that both were preempted by the Copyright Act.

Jeff Homrig, a lawyer for SerpApi, said the company remains confident. He said SerpApi accesses public search results rather than Reddit’s platform, and argued that public information does not become protected because a platform wants to charge for it. Perplexity AI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story draws on original reporting from Ars Technica.