NEW YORK - The release of the latest image generator on OpenAI’s ChatGPT has triggered a flood of online memes featuring images done in the style of Studio Ghibli, the Japanese studio behind classic animated films like My Neighbour Totoro (1988) and Spirited Away (2001).
The virality of these images, with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman even changing his profile picture on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, to match the style, immediately raised questions about copyright infringement by the ChatGPT maker, which already faces lawsuits regarding the use of source material without permission.
Since the release on March 26, artificial intelligence (AI)-generated images depicting Studio Ghibli versions of tech billionaire Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump, The Lord Of The Rings film trilogy (2001 to 2003), and even a recreation of the Sept 11 attacks have gone viral across online platforms.
On March 27, the White House took part by posting on X a Ghibli-style image of a weeping alleged felon being handcuffed by a US immigration officer before her deportation.
Originally intended to be available on the platform for free, Mr Altman said the huge success of the new generator was unexpected and meant the tool would remain limited to paid users for now.
It was already possible to generate images with ChatGPT, but the latest version is powered by GPT-4o, the company’s highest-performing model, and allows sophisticated results to be obtained through very succinct requests, which was not the case before.
After the viral trend, a video from 2016 resurfaced in which Studio Ghibli’s legendary director Hayao Miyazaki is seen lashing out during an AI demonstration by staff.
“I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all. I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself,” said Miyazaki, in an English translation of his remarks in the video.
The trend “is especially insidious and malicious because of how outspokenly scathing Miyazaki has been toward the tech”, wrote artist and illustrator Jayd “Chira” Ait-Kaci on social media platform Bluesky.
“It’s always about contempt for artists, every time,” she added.
OpenAI is facing a barrage of lawsuits over copyright infringements, including one major case with The New York Times and others from artists, musicians and publishers.
Asked by AFP about the latest viral trend, and whether it threatened Studio Ghibli’s intellectual property, OpenAI said the company is still fine-tuning its model.
“Our goal is to give users as much creative freedom as possible,” a company spokeswoman told AFP.
“We continue to prevent generations in the style of individual living artists, but we do permit broader studio styles, which people have used to generate and share some truly delightful and inspired original fan creations,” she added.
“We’re always learning from real-world use and feedback, and we’ll keep refining our policies as we go.”
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The company is aggressively lobbying the White House and US Congress to make the use of copyrighted content by AI companies part of the fair use doctrine.
Fair use allowances already apply to search engines or in the case of satire and memes online, and allow companies to freely use copyrighted material without permission.
Bloomberg reported on March 26 that OpenAI is close to finalising a US$40 billion (S$53.5 billion) funding round led by Japan’s SoftBank Group that would be the biggest funding round ever for a start-up.
OpenAI has projected its annual revenue could exceed US$12.7 billion in 2025, up from US$3.7 billion generated in 2024. AFP
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ChatGPTCopyright/Intellectual propertyAI/artificial intelligenceJapanUnited States
