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Artists and Illustrators Are Suing Three A.I. Art Generators for Scraping and ‘Collaging’ Their Work Without Consent

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Summary

A group of artists have filed a lawsuit against three A.I. art generators for unlawfully scraping and using their artwork in training datasets without consent or compensation. The artists claim the A.I. generators have devalued and diluted their art by allowing art to be generated in their style, and they are requesting damages and changes to the A.I. image generators. The companies behind the A.I. generators dispute the claims, arguing that their use of images is protected by the fair use doctrine in copyright law.

Q&As

What are the three A.I. art generators that the artists are suing?
The three A.I. art generators that the artists are suing are Midjourney Inc, DeviantArt Inc's DreamUp, and Stability A.I. Ltd's Stable Diffusion.

What is the LAION-Aesthetics dataset and how was it created?
The LAION-Aesthetics dataset is a collection of images created by a German company and commissioned by Stability A.I. It is made up of images from stock photo sites, shopping sites, and websites hosting user-generated content.

What do the plaintiffs allege that the A.I. generators have done to devalue and dilute the value of their art?
The plaintiffs allege that the A.I. generators have used their artworks without consent or compensation to build the training sets that inform the platforms’ algorithms, and have allowed art to be generated “in the style” of particular artists, thus “siphoning commissions from the artists themselves.”

What is the fair use doctrine and how does it relate to this case?
The fair use doctrine is a doctrine in U.S. copyright law that allows excerpts of copyrighted material to be used for nonprofit educational purposes, without permission from or payment toward the copyright holder.

What is Getty Images seeking from Stability A.I. in its separate lawsuit?
Getty Images is seeking legal “clarity” as to the rights of creators and entities from Stability A.I. in its separate lawsuit, rather than financial compensation or to halt the development of generative A.I.

AI Comments

👍 This article does a great job of delving into the legal issues surrounding A.I. art generators and exploring the implications for artists and copyright holders.

👎 This article does not go into enough detail on the ethical implications of using A.I. art generators to create work without the consent of the artist.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about a group of artists who are suing three A.I. art generators for scraping and using their artwork in their training datasets without their consent. They're claiming that this has devalued and diluted their artwork, and that it is affecting their livelihoods.

Friend: Wow, that's really concerning. It sounds like these companies are taking advantage of artists and their work without any regard for their rights.

Me: Exactly. The lawsuit also claims that the companies have been using the artists' names to generate images with their distinctive styles, thus taking away commissions that should be going to the artists. Furthermore, the defendants are arguing that the use of the images is fair use, and that the A.I. generated images are "transformative" enough to not violate copyright laws.

Friend: That's really worrying. It's important that the artists in this case are fighting back and that their rights are respected. It will be interesting to see how the case plays out and what the implications will be for other A.I. art generators.

Action items

Educate yourself on copyright and fair use laws to better understand the legal implications of using A.I. art generators.
Reach out to the Joseph Saveri Law Firm to learn more about the class action lawsuit and how to get involved.
Follow the case closely to stay up to date on the latest developments and to understand how the outcome may affect the use of A.I. art generators.

Technical terms

A.I. Art Generators: Artificial Intelligence Art Generators are computer programs that use algorithms to generate art.
Scraping: Scraping is the process of collecting data from websites or other sources.
Collaging: Collaging is the process of combining multiple images or elements into a single composition.
Copyright: Copyright is a legal right that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights to its use and distribution.
Unfair Competition: Unfair competition is a legal term that refers to any activity that is considered to be deceptive or fraudulent in nature.
Training Datasets: Training datasets are collections of data used to train machine learning algorithms.
LAION-Aesthetics Dataset: The LAION-Aesthetics dataset is a collection of images used to train algorithms for A.I. art generators.
Stock Photo Sites: Stock photo sites are websites that offer images for purchase or license.
Fair Use: Fair use is a doctrine in U.S. copyright law that allows excerpts of copyrighted material to be used for nonprofit educational purposes, without permission from or payment toward the copyright holder.
Transformative: Transformative is a term used to describe works that have been altered or adapted from their original form.
Social Media: Social media are websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking.
Art-Sharing Sites: Art-sharing sites are websites that allow users to upload and share artwork.
Infringements: Infringements are violations of a copyright or other intellectual property rights.
Biometric Information: Biometric information is data that is used to identify a person based on their physical or behavioral characteristics.