Midjourney Seeks Studios' AI Use Records in Copyright Dispute

AI image generator Midjourney is seeking court orders to force Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros. to reveal their internal artificial intelligence usage. The request is part of an ongoing copyright lawsuit where Midjourney contends the studios might be engaged in the same practices for which they are suing the company.

The dispute centers on evidence disclosure within the copyright litigation. Studios allege Midjourney trained its AI on copyrighted material and allows unauthorized generation of protected characters. Midjourney denies wrongdoing, asserting AI training on copyrighted works falls under fair use.

Midjourney challenges a previous court ruling that limited the scope of discovery to AI systems creating "consumer-facing" images. The AI company argues this restriction prevents it from accessing crucial evidence that would support its defense and reveal if studios are internally using AI on unlicensed copyrighted material, similar to the allegations against Midjourney.

Furthermore, Midjourney wants studios to disclose all prompts and resulting images entered into its system, not just those cited in the lawsuits. The company argues that if studios seek to hold it liable for user-generated images, full disclosure is necessary, especially since outputs generated by plaintiffs or their agents legally cannot be infringing.

Studios have opposed the broader discovery requests, labeling them a "fishing expedition." Their legal team states the goal is not to halt AI technology but to prevent unauthorized copying and distribution of their intellectual property, including famous characters.