They had argued that the suit targets their “speech” because the creation of art reflecting new ideas and concepts — like those conveyed in text prompts to elicit hyper-realistic graphics — is constitutionally protected activity.
The suit, filed last year in California federal court, targets Stability’s Stable Diffusion, which is incorporated into the company’s AI image generator DreamStudio and allegedly powers DeviantArt’s DreamUp and Midjourney.
Orrick sided with artists on the issue of whether the companies can dismiss the claim under the state’s anti-SLAPP statute, finding that the “public interest exemption is met here.” He noted that the claim was initially dismissed because the suit failed to substantiate allegations that the companies used the names of Sarah Andersen, Kelly McKernan or Karla Ortiz — the artists who brought the complaint — to advertise their products.
In December, scrutiny around Midjourney intensified after its latest update no longer remixed images and figures enough to obfuscate what legal experts said is clear copyright infringement.
One example: When prompted with “Thanos Infinity War,” Midjourney responded with an image of the purple-skinned villain in a frame that appears to be taken straight from the movie or promotional materials.
The chatbot can also seemingly replicate most animation styles, generating picture-perfect characters from an array of titles, including DreamWorks’ Shrek, Pixar’s Ratatouille and Warner Bros.’ The Lego Movie.
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