AI Ghibli Art Sparks OpenAI Legal Questions

The Ghibli-fication Phenomenon: OpenAI's Viral Hit

Illustration by Ben Kothe, The Atlantic. Sources: Frazer Harrison, Getty, Everett Collection.

A few weeks ago, OpenAI orchestrated a highly successful corporate promotion. CEO Sam Altman commented on social media that while the initial 2022 ChatGPT launch was an incredible viral moment, the reaction to a recent upgrade was, in his view, nothing short of "biblical". Altman reported that one million users signed up for the chatbot in a single hour. This surge was driven by a new, more flexible image-generating feature capable of emulating the styles of different art and design studios. Altman hailed this as "a new high-water mark for us in allowing creative freedom."

Almost instantly, the internet was flooded with AI-generated images. The style of Studio Ghibli, the Japanese animation studio co-founded by Hayao Miyazaki and acclaimed for films like Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, became overwhelmingly popular. This Ghibli aesthetic was applied to everything from family portraits to depictions of historical events like 9/11. Sam Altman even updated his X avatar to an apparent Ghiblified self-portrait and shared a joke about the style's sudden popularity overshadowing his other work.

While the Ghibli AI trend is often seen as a spontaneous user-driven event, with one X user noting OpenAI's "incredible fortune" that "the positive vibes of ghibli was the first viral use of their model and not some awful deepfake nonsense," Altman's comments suggest otherwise. He replied, “Believe it or not we put a lot of thought into the initial examples we show when we introduce new technology.” Altman has personally reposted many Ghiblified images, including his profile picture which appeared less than 24 hours after the Ghibli-esque visuals gained traction. OpenAI President Greg Brockman also shared and praised these images.

This trend differs significantly from typical meme or GIF sharing. The technology empowers ChatGPT users to manipulate visual languages developed by artists over entire careers, potentially devaluing these distinctive styles and undermining artists' ability to monetize their work. While current laws don't specifically cover generative AI, strong arguments suggest OpenAI could be at fault and potentially liable for substantial damages. Some of these arguments are currently being examined in a lawsuit against Midjourney, another image-generating AI company.

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It is possible that OpenAI and Studio Ghibli have a promotional agreement, similar to deals OpenAI has with media publishers like The Atlantic (this article's publisher). However, this appears improbable given Hayao Miyazaki's well-known preference for hand-drawn animation and his aversion to certain forms of computer-generated imagery. Both companies declined to comment on whether such a deal exists, and neither Miyazaki nor Studio Ghibli has publicly addressed the situation.

Artistic Styles vs. Copyright Protection

Individual artworks receive copyright protection, but visual styles, such as Studio Ghibli's, typically do not. The legal reasoning is that styles should be free to evolve through influence and reinterpretation by other artists, a creative process that led from van Gogh to Picasso, and Spenser to Shakespeare. However, the current situation, where a multitude of users apply Ghibli’s style like a digital filter without adding genuine creative input, doesn't represent a collective advancement of visual culture. These images are also a direct outcome of a private company promoting its tech product, partly through its executives' social media, by enabling the creation of images in a specific style. An OpenAI spokesperson stated, “We continue to prevent generations in the style of individual living artists, but we do permit broader studio styles.”

The Right of Publicity: When a Style Becomes an Identity

This situation resembles an endorsement deal, like those between Nike and LeBron James, or Pepsi and Beyoncé, which typically involve significant financial compensation: Use ChatGPT; make Studio Ghibli art! Such endorsements usually cost millions. For instance, in 1985, Ford Motor Company sought to use popular singers for an ad campaign. When Bette Midler declined to record her song "Do You Want to Dance?" for Ford's advertising agency, Young & Rubicam, they hired one of her backup singers to mimic her style. The ad aired, and Midler sued.

The court defined the core issue as "an appropriation of the attributes of one’s identity," referencing a prior precedent. Young & Rubicam had selected Midler not merely for a good singer but to associate their brand with the distinct feelings her recognizable voice evoked. The court ruled, “When a distinctive voice of a professional singer is widely known and is deliberately imitated in order to sell a product, the sellers have appropriated what is not theirs.” Young & Rubicam had infringed upon Midler’s “right of publicity,” and she was awarded $400,000 (about $1 million today).

OpenAI faced a similar risk last year with a voice assistant product featuring a voice many found similar to Scarlett Johansson's. Like Midler, Johansson had been approached and had declined. Legal experts suggested she had a strong right-of-publicity case. Although Johansson’s lawyers sent letters, no formal complaint was filed. OpenAI denied modeling the voice on Johansson’s but removed it and apologized.

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When the public sees a flood of images in the Studio Ghibli style accompanied by praise for ChatGPT, they might reasonably assume Miyazaki himself endorses or is affiliated with OpenAI. He is the studio's most famous artist and has directed more of its films than anyone else. Even though the aesthetic is called Ghibli's, it is most distinctively Miyazaki’s style, evident even in his early works like the 1979 film Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro, created six years before Ghibli's founding. Many people recognize Spirited Away as Miyazaki’s creation without necessarily knowing Studio Ghibli.

False Endorsement and Trade Dress: Protecting Unique Visuals

Beyond a right-of-publicity claim, Studio Ghibli or Miyazaki could potentially file for false endorsement or trade-dress infringement, actions other artists have recently taken against AI companies. False endorsement laws aim to prevent consumer confusion regarding whether an individual or company endorses a product or service. Trade-dress law safeguards the unique visual elements that identify a product's origin and distinguish it from competitors, such as the iconic Coca-Cola bottle shape. Apple even has trade-dress protection for the iPhone's general rectangular shape with rounded corners—a design arguably less distinctive than Ghibli's style.

In August, a judge acknowledged the viability of false-endorsement and trade-dress claims against Midjourney, finding it plausible that Midjourney and similar AI tools utilize a component that acts as "a trade dress database," as alleged by plaintiffs.

The Broader Impact on Artists and Creative Industries

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Regardless of court decisions or actions by Studio Ghibli, the potential negative consequences are evident. Greg Rutkowski, an artist involved in the Midjourney case, has noted that AI-generated images in his style, often captioned with his name, could soon saturate the internet, overshadowing his genuine work and confusing potential discoverers. Dana Rao, former general counsel for Adobe, told The Verge last year, “People are going to lose some of their economic livelihood because of style appropriation.” Rao suggested that existing laws, as previously detailed regarding AI and copyright, might be insufficient for handling generative AI, stating, “We’re probably going to need a new right here to protect people.” This isn't just about artists' livelihoods; it's about the evolution of visual aesthetics. Artists like Miyazaki advance culture by dedicating their careers to observing the world and refining a resonant style. Generative AI, conversely, primarily imitates past styles, thereby reducing incentives for humans to create new ones. As one designer recently posted, “Nobody is ever crafting an aesthetic over decades again, and no market will exist to support those who try it.”

OpenAI: Tech Innovator or Legal Provocateur?

Looking back on this AI boom years from now, OpenAI might be remembered less for its technology and more for its role as a provocateur. Through its clever products, the company has rapidly spurred new uses for image and text generation, effectively testing what society will tolerate legally, ethically, and socially. Recently, numerous publishers have filed complaints regarding their brands being associated with articles invented or altered by chatbots, another form of misleading endorsement. These publishers, including The Atlantic (this article's publisher), and others, are suing various AI companies for issues like trademark dilution and infringement. Meanwhile, Sam Altman continues to post online using his smiling, synthetically generated Ghibli-style avatar.