Walt Disney Studios and Universal City Studios have recently slapped a lawsuit on image generating artificial intelligence firm Midjourney. The case alleges that Midjourney’s generation tool, operated in part by the AI pioneer and founder David Holz, infringes on copyright on a massive scale. The studios say it produces a “bottomless pit of plagiarism.” The lawsuit focuses on almost 320 million other images generated by Midjourney. These photographs are recreations of some of the most memorable characters from each company, including Darth Vader, Elsa from Frozen, and the Minions from Despicable Me.
San Francisco–based Midjourney is a small, self-funded company with fewer than a dozen full-time staffers. Holz, having previously founded hardware sensor company Leap Motion, now finds himself at the head of Midjourney, leading the charge in this fast-moving and contentious world of AI. The firm’s advisory board features luminaries like Nat Friedman, the former CEO of GitHub. Philip Rosedale, the founder of Second Life, is another anchor of this remarkable lineup.
The legal action accuses Midjourney of generating “innumerable” images that closely resemble Disney characters, including Marvel superheroes such as Spiderman, the Incredible Hulk, and Iron Man. This has created a huge stir about the illegal copyright infringement and harmful use of AI technology within creative industries.
Horacio Gutierrez, a legal expert in intellectual property, stated that while AI tools can potentially enhance human creativity, “Piracy is piracy, and the fact that it’s done by an AI company does not make it any less infringing.” He focused on the images produced by Midjourney not being transformative enough. Consequently, they fail to meet the threshold of originality.
“It doesn’t seem like they’re being transformed in a creative or imaginative way.” – Shubha Ghosh
The lawsuit highlights challenges involving AI-created works and copyright regulations. Legal analyst Randy McCarthy pointed out the difficulties of this case. He noted that it will take a deep, critical look at Midjourney’s ToS and a basic fair use analysis. He remarked that “No litigation is ever a slam dunk, and that is true for Disney and Universal in this case.”
As the case progresses, Midjourney has not responded to BBC News’ request for comment. The allegations have raised a firestorm. The outcome of this legal battle could set important precedents for how AI companies operate within the realms of copyright law and creative expression.