Artists Advance Landmark Copyright Lawsuit Against AI Image Generators
A federal judge allows visual artists to proceed with key copyright claims against Stability AI and other AI companies, finding their arguments plausible.
A California federal judge rules that a group of visual artists can move forward with a landmark copyright lawsuit against several artificial intelligence companies. The artists, including Sarah Andersen, Kelly McKernan, and Karla Ortiz, bring claims against Stability AI, Midjourney, DeviantArt, and Runway AI over their popular image-generation systems.
Judge William Orrick determines that the plaintiffs plausibly argue the companies violate their rights by illegally storing their artwork. The judge states that the Stable Diffusion AI model is likely built to a significant extent on copyrighted works and is designed to facilitate that infringement. However, the court dismisses several other claims, including accusations of breach of contract and unjust enrichment.
The ruling does not resolve the central questions of the case regarding fair use and direct copyright infringement. Instead, the lawsuit now enters the discovery phase, allowing the artists' legal team to investigate exactly how the AI companies collect and use copyrighted materials to train their image generators.