Studio Ghibli is clearly unhappy with Open AI users and creators using their signature animation style to create images of themselves in the version. The widely popular feature has not gone down well with founder Hayao Miyazaki, who had previously criticised the model and CEO Sam Altman for using their Japanese art style without consent and underlined that it directly interferes with their core philosophy.
Now, a Japanese trade organisation, which represents publishers like Studio Ghibli and Bandai Namco has urged Open AI to stop using their copyrighted content for training their AI models especially, Sora 2, the company's new video generation model. In their letter on October 27, Japan’s Content Overseas Distribution Association (CODA) said that a "large portion of content produced by Sora 2 closely resembles Japanese content or images." The organisation said the new platform, launched on September 30 is using Japanese works as training material for their model and is hence able to generate images close to these publications.
CODA underlined the copyright infringement issues that Open AI could face in a legal suit under Japanese laws and demanded them to stop using their content. Further, CODA asked Open AI to respond to "claims and inquiries from CODA member companies regarding copyright infringement related to Sora 2’s outputs."
While Open AI works according to an opt-out basis where a copyright holder must opt out of having their content used by Sora, Japan's copyright system involves seeking prior permission before using their works.
Open AI has previously faced criticism for creating images featuring Martin Luther King Jr and stopped creating pictures after significant backlash and protests from the civil rights activist's estate.
