In a significant legal development, Disney and Universal are suing the AI startup Midjourney for unauthorized use of their iconic characters, such as Yoda, Shrek, and Iron Man, to create countless AI-generated graphics. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, accuses Midjourney of mass copyright infringement for training its image generator on content owned by these studios without permission or compensation. Historically, Disney and Universal have been fierce competitors in both the box office and theme park arenas.
However, they have now united against what they consider a shared threat to their intellectual property. The lawsuit paints Midjourney as “a bottomless pit of plagiarism,” claiming that its business model is fundamentally built on the unauthorized use of protected materials. The studios are seeking an injunction to halt this infringement and request damages for what they describe as intentional misuse of their intellectual property.
Midjourney’s technology generates high-quality visuals from text prompts, a common practice in the growing generative AI field. These models are trained using massive datasets scraped from the internet without regard for copyrights, leading to outputs that closely resemble copyrighted characters. Examples cited in the lawsuit include AI-generated depictions of Yoda wielding a lightsaber and Bart Simpson skateboarding, highlighting the studios’ concerns that Midjourney is infringing on their rights.
Disney and Universal have requested that Midjourney cease its use of their copyrighted materials or implement safeguards to mitigate misuse. Their allegations suggest Midjourney ignored these requests, instead releasing new models that exacerbated the issue by producing more detailed copies of protected characters. Midjourney, founded in 2021, has quickly gained attention and substantial revenue, reportedly reaching $300 million in 2024.
Its founder admitted the company built its training data by scraping the internet without securing permission from artists. This oversight may have serious legal implications, given that a prior lawsuit by artists against Midjourney and similar companies is still progressing through the courts. With two major players in the entertainment industry backing this legal battle, the stakes are substantial.
This case reflects a broader tension between AI companies and creators who rightfully seek compensation for their work. As copyright issues continue to surface in the world of AI, the question remains whether companies like Midjourney can justify their practices in court.
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