Warner Bros. sues Midjourney for AI images of Superman, Batman, and other characters

Warner Bros. has initiated a lawsuit against the AI startup Midjourney, accusing it of copyright infringement. The entertainment giant claims that the platform enables users to create images and videos of beloved characters such as Superman, Batman, and Bugs Bunny without obtaining the necessary permissions. According to a report by Reuters, Warner Bros. alleges that Midjourney has engaged in willful misconduct. The company previously had restrictions in place to prevent subscribers from generating content based on protected images, but these measures have recently been relaxed. The lawsuit states, "Midjourney has made a calculated and profit-driven decision to offer zero protection for copyright owners, despite being aware of the extensive scope of its piracy and copyright infringement." The legal action seeks unspecified damages, the recovery of any profits made from the alleged violations, and an injunction to stop any further infringement. This lawsuit is not an isolated incident; it follows a similar case filed in June by Walt Disney and Universal against Midjourney, which also concerns copyright infringements involving characters like Darth Vader, Bart Simpson, and Shrek. In response to these allegations, Midjourney has maintained that training generative AI models using such works falls under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. As of now, Midjourney has not provided a comment to TechCrunch regarding the ongoing litigation.