Secondhand book sales are booming. Is it because of AI?

Independent booksellers now face unprecedented bulk orders of secondhand books. These shipments go to distant warehouses with no clear final destination. This surge follows a pivotal 2025 US court ruling. The decision found that using purchased books to train AI software, like Anthropic’s Claude, does not breach copyright law. Sellers and experts suspect AI companies drive these random, massive purchases. Their goal is likely to ‘destructively scan’ the books for new training data.

Key takeaways

• A 2025 US court ruling established that using purchased books to train AI is not a copyright violation, directly enabling the current sales boom.
• Booksellers report massive, seemingly random bulk orders of diverse titles, from obscure texts to novels, shipped to far-off warehouses.
• Internal documents from AI firm Anthropic revealed ‘Project Panama,’ an initiative with the stated aim to ‘destructively scan all the books in the world.’
• The process of destructive scanning involves removing a book’s spine for rapid digitization, after which the physical remains are recycled.
• While the sales provide a commercial boost, booksellers express ethical concerns about the potential destruction of rare and historically significant editions.

Unprecedented Bulk Orders and the AI Suspicion

Independent booksellers worldwide report a strange pattern of bulk purchases. Stuart Manley of Barter Books notes a single recent order from a Canadian company matched his typical weekly sales of two to three thousand books. He states he has “never seen the like of this after 30 years in the second-hand book trade.” These huge orders ship to remote warehouses, leaving sellers uncertain of the books’ ultimate fate.

Random Purchases Point to AI Training

Booksellers suspect the buyers are AI firms, not avid readers, hunting for new information. This idea gains strength from the purchases’ random nature, covering diverse subjects from obscure Latin texts to cowboy novels. Experts confirm this varied subject matter hints at AI training. Unusual and rare texts could supply fresh material to refine large language models.

Mr. Manley says it’s hard to explain these sales, which appear to have “no rhyme or reason.” This activity started after a 2025 US court ruling that using purchased books to train AI software was legal, a case involving Anthropic. Internal company documents from that lawsuit revealed “Project Panama.” Its aim was to “destructively scan all the books in the world,” a process that removes a book’s spine for fast scanning before recycling the remains.

The Legal Precedent: A 2025 US Court Ruling

The surge in secondhand book sales connects directly to a 2025 US court ruling. That year, a judge decided using purchased books to train AI software did not violate US copyright law.

A Transformative Use Under the Law

The decision came from a lawsuit three authors brought against AI firm Anthropic. In his ruling, Judge William Alsup called Anthropic’s use of the authors’ books “exceedingly transformative,” making it permissible under US law.

When court documents were unsealed last month, they showed books were being destroyed to train Anthropic’s AI chatbot, Claude. The papers indicated the company aimed to “destructively scan all the books in the world.” This method involves removing a book’s spine to scan pages quickly, with the leftover material recycled.

An Anthropic spokesperson said sourcing books for training is common across the AI industry. They stated, “None of our data acquisition programs buy and destroy rare or antiquarian books.”

‘Project Panama’ and the Process of Destructive Scanning

Internal communications from AI firm Anthropic, exposed in court documents, called its book-ingestion effort “Project Panama.” The papers showed the company’s goal was to “destructively scan all the books in the world.”

Destructive scanning means shipping books to locations for industrial-scale digitization. This process includes removing a book’s spine so all pages can be scanned rapidly, with the remains recycled. Booksellers have reported bulk orders of diverse titles, from obscure Latin texts to cowboy novels, shipping to far-off warehouses.

The project’s name and reality have been discussed on bookseller forums, according to Stuart Manley of Barter Books. Yet, sellers cannot confirm if their books are headed for it, noting the sales seem random with “no rhyme or reason.” Manley says he does not know that his books are being bought for Project Panama or similar projects by other AI firms.

The Booksellers’ Dilemma and Ethical Concerns

For booksellers, the surge in bulk sales creates a clear dilemma. The commercial boost is welcome, but significant unease exists over the potential destruction of books, a practice revealed in court documents about Anthropic. David Tobin of Walden Books says it is “very nice to sell some of these titles which haven’t been sold for many years, but it would be sad if they are ultimately destroyed.”

Cultural Loss vs. Common Recycling

This worry intensifies for rare and historically significant editions. Derek Walker of McNaughtan’s Bookshop differentiates between a limited academic text and a unique survivor. He states, “It would be a much more significant problem if one like that were to be bought for destruction, having survived this long.” The fear is that destructive scanning for AI training could erase irreplaceable cultural artifacts.

On the other hand, some sellers accept a pragmatic view for common, unwanted stock. Stuart Manley from Barter Books sees recycling as a good solution for many titles, especially with increased trade. He remarks, “the world no longer needs five million copies of The Da Vinci Code.” He admits ethical questions remain, but the sales offer a tangible benefit by moving books that had been advertised for decades without selling.