Walt Disney Co., Common Footage and Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday sued a Chinese language synthetic intelligence agency known as MiniMax for copyright infringement, alleging its AI service generates iconic characters together with Darth Vader, the Minions and Surprise Lady with out the studios’ permission.
“MiniMax’s bootlegging enterprise mannequin and defiance of U.S. copyright regulation are usually not solely an assault on Plaintiffs and the hard-working artistic group that brings the magic of films to life, however are additionally a broader menace to the American movement image business,” the businesses stated of their criticism, filed in U.S. District Court docket in Los Angeles.
The leisure corporations requested that MiniMax be restrained from additional infringement. They’re in search of damages of as much as $150,000 per infringed work, in addition to legal professional charges and prices.
That is the most recent spherical of copyright lawsuits that main studios have introduced in opposition to AI corporations over mental property issues. In June, Disney and Common Footage sued AI agency Midjourney for copyright infringement. Earlier this month, Warner Bros. Discovery additionally sued Midjourney.
Shanghai-based MiniMax has a service known as Hailuo AI, which is marketed as a “Hollywood studio in your pocket” and used characters together with the Joker and Groot in its advertisements with out the studios’ permission, the studios’ lawsuit stated. Customers can kind in a textual content immediate requesting “Star Wars’” iconic character Yoda or DC Comics’ Superman, and Hailuo AI can pull up prime quality and downloadable pictures or video of the character, in response to the doc.
“MiniMax fully disregards U.S. copyright regulation and treats Plaintiffs’ invaluable copyrighted characters like its personal,” the lawsuit stated. “MiniMax’s copyright infringement is willful and brazen.”
“Given the fast development in know-how within the AI video era area … it is just a matter of time till Hailuo AI can generate unauthorized, infringing movies that includes Plaintiffs’ copyrighted characters which might be considerably longer, and even finally the identical length as a film or tv program,” the lawsuit stated.
MiniMax didn’t instantly return a request for remark.
Hollywood is grappling with important challenges, together with the specter of AI, as corporations consolidate and cut back their bills as manufacturing prices rise. Many actors and writers, nonetheless recovering from strikes that happened in 2023, are scrambling to search out jobs. Some imagine the expansion of AI has threatened their livelihoods as tech instruments can replicate iconic characters with textual content prompts.
Whereas some studios have sued AI corporations, others are on the lookout for methods to companion with them. For instance, Lionsgate has partnered with AI startup Runway to assist with behind the scenes processes corresponding to storyboarding.
