In what industry experts are calling a pivotal moment in the ongoing battle between traditional media and artificial intelligence, Disney and Universal Studios have launched the first major Hollywood lawsuit against an AI company, targeting image generator Midjourney for alleged copyright infringement.
The lawsuit, filed on June 11 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, accuses San Francisco-based Midjourney of operating as a "virtual vending machine" and "bottomless pit of plagiarism" that generates unauthorized copies of the studios' intellectual property. The 110-page complaint includes detailed visual examples showing Midjourney-generated images of popular characters like Darth Vader, Homer Simpson, and Shrek alongside the original copyrighted versions.
"Piracy is piracy, and the fact that it's done by an AI company does not make it any less infringing," stated Horacio Gutierrez, Disney's senior executive vice president and chief legal officer. The studios claim Midjourney ignored their previous requests to stop infringing on their copyrighted works or implement technological measures to prevent such infringement.
Founded in 2021, Midjourney has grown rapidly to approximately 21 million users and reportedly generated $300 million in revenue last year. The company's CEO, David Holz, briefly addressed the lawsuit during a weekly conference call with users, saying only that he believes "Midjourney is going to be around for a very long time."
The case challenges one of the AI industry's fundamental assumptions: that training on copyrighted materials falls under fair use principles. If successful, the lawsuit could have far-reaching implications for the entire generative AI industry. Disney and Universal are seeking damages of $150,000 per infringed work—with more than 150 works listed in the complaint—potentially exceeding $20 million in total damages.
This lawsuit joins a growing wave of legal actions against AI companies, including cases brought by visual artists, news organizations, and music publishers. However, as the first major case from Hollywood studios, it represents a significant escalation in the ongoing tension between content creators and AI developers over intellectual property rights in the digital age.