Winning the AI race with China is often framed in terms of expensive, long-term bets: bringing back chip manufacturing, pouring billions of dollars into data centers, and modernizing and expanding the power grid. But as we seek to win the Great Power competition of the 21st century, are we overlooking a crucial resource?

We spent our careers in uniform contributing to our country’s national security. We believe that artificial intelligence is the decisive battlefield of our age – and that the choices we make today will determine whether the United States ultimately prevails.

We often remember pivotal moments in history by focusing on dramatic decisions and famous leaders; D-Day was inconceivable without General Eisenhower’s decisiveness and bold resolve. Yet the success of that invasion and the follow-on campaigns also relied on little-known tactical and operational choices, like the decision to assemble prefabricated artificial harbors and the installation of covert fuel pipelines, which together paved the way for Allied victory in World War II.

The idea that tactical decisions can shape historic breakthroughs holds true today, as Washington focuses on the growing AI competition with China. In fact, the biggest threat to American AI leadership may not come from Hangzhou, home to Chinese AI labs like DeepSeek and Alibaba, but instead it could well come from our own American courts in the form of copyright lawsuits that could severely impact America’s ability to innovate and achieve the fullest from its AI endeavors.

Currently, the outcome of dozens of lawsuits threatens to blunt America’s innovative edge. The legal disputes hinge on the “fair use” doctrine, which permits in certain circumstances the use of copyrighted material. AI........

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