博客

阅读正文

In a notable legal battle filed in a Los Angeles federal court, entertainment giants Disney and Universal are suing the AI image generator Midjourney for copyright infringement. The lawsuit labels Midjourney’s tool as a ‘bottomless pit of plagiarism’ due to its generation of images featuring well-known characters such as Darth Vader, Elsa from Frozen, and the Minions from Despicable Me, all without permission. This case arises amid the increasing use of generative AI technology, which can create new images or text by learning from existing data. Midjourney, established in 2021, reportedly builds its database by scraping the internet, which may include copyrighted materials from Disney and Universal. This legal action is significant as it focuses on images rather than text or music, marking a new area in the debate over AI and copyright law. Disney and Universal argue that Midjourney should have prevented the creation of infringing images or stopped using their copyrighted works. However, Midjourney has persisted in updating its service, allowing for the creation of even higher-quality images. Disney’s chief legal officer, Horacio Gutierrez, acknowledged the potential of AI technology but strongly opposed piracy. Similarly, NBCUniversal’s general counsel, Kim Harris, expressed a commitment to protect the work of creative artists. As a result, Disney and Universal are seeking a preliminary injunction to stop Midjourney from using their copyrighted materials and are also pursuing unspecified damages. This lawsuit is part of a wider array of legal challenges facing AI companies, including actions from authors, news outlets, and record labels, all worried about the unauthorized use of their content in AI training. The outcome of this case could have profound implications for the future of AI technology and copyright law, particularly how AI systems are trained and what is considered fair use of copyrighted material.