AI-generated images are a legal mess - and still a very human process

Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET With AI, one can now produce thousands of high-quality illustrations and videos. But that is only part of the story. Last August, a group of artists took AI imaging tools providers to court, which ruled against Stability AI and MidJourney's motion to dismiss the artists' copyright infringement claims. The case has moved to discovery and is set to begin in September 2026. Also: Can AI supercharge creativity without stealing from artists? "In reaching this decision, the judge found both direct and induced copyright infringement claims to be plausible," explains Zach Schor in the NYU Journal of Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law. "The induced infringement claim against Stability AI argued that by distributing their model, Stable Diffusion, to other AI providers, the company facilitated the copying of copyrighted material." In allowing this claim to proceed, "the judge noted a statement by Stability's CEO, who claimed that Stability compressed 100 ... Read full article.