AI-generated artwork has garnered controversy since the debut of image-generating tools like Stable Diffusion and Midjourney. Artists complain that these AI models are trained on giant datasets of copyright protected artwork—without permission from the copyright holder—allowing any user to effectively copy a creator's trademark style with just a text prompt. A group of visual artists are even trying to take developers to court, accusing them of serving as "copyright-laundering devices, promising customers the benefits of art without the costs of artists."
But Francis Belin, Christie's president for Asia-Pacific, doesn't buy those arguments. "I struggle logically, and struggle to understand how using a large data set, which is the whole point of AI—how will you be able as the owner of a certain piece of intellectual property to claim your rights?" he said on Wednesday at Fortune's Brainstorm Design conference in Macau, China.
