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From: Rich <rich@example.invalid>
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Derivative Licensing Question
Date: Sat, 22 Mar 2025 15:19:44 -0000 (UTC)
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Stefan Ram <ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de> wrote:
>   . Now your program clearly has nothing to do with the original
>   anymore. You just used that to get started but then gradually
>   transformed it into your own code. So, is "B = 7" now free from
>   any copyright of the original author of "A = 2"? At what point
>   during the transition exactly did the copyright disappear?

Your last question is the key, and (under US law) is something that can 
only ultimately be determined by a court case.  The reason why is that 
the law around copyright decides "infringement" based on factors such 
as:

The nature of the change;
The amount of change made;
The use of the changed code;
The effect of the copy upon the market value of the original;
etc.

And, you'll notice a disconcerting issue with all of those factors.  
They are not absolute binary decisions (is 2 less than 4).  They are 
subjective judgement calls.  And barring the invention of a "copyright 
AI oracle", the true subjectiveness (meaning did, or did not infringe) 
can only be determined by a court during a lawsuit.