The Loki season 2 AI poster has sparked controversy among the designer community as they think these generative AI tools are being developed with designers’ work without consent. Eventually, designers lose their jobs to these machines. Here are all the details about the incident!
Loki season 2 AI poster creates concern among designers
Concerns are now being raised in the design community that AI image generators may be used without the approval of artists, possibly displacing human creators. This isn’t the first time Disney has received criticism for using generative AI in their products. Despite Disney’s promises that AI techniques do not decrease the job of actual designers, a previous Marvel series, Secret Invasion, caused similar issues.
Madly disappointed they're using AI generated imagery to promote Loki. https://t.co/SFhWpQfWE7
— Katria (@katriaraden) October 3, 2023
Marvel used an AI-generated intro for Secret Invasion, and it received backlash from the community due to it. Director Ali Selim said in one of his statements that AI indeed made the opening titles, and Selim thought the studio who made them actually did a great job, similar to the Loki season 2 AI poster controversy. However, the director hasn’t taken a step forward to admit it, so that is why it is still a “claim.”
Shutterstock’s AI image policy
Shutterstock, a famous stock picture marketplace, has strict regulations in place for AI-generated material. AI-generated material may only be licensed on their site if it was developed using Shutterstock’s own AI-image generator tool, according to their criteria. Shutterstock can establish intellectual property rights over all submitted work thanks to this policy. While Shutterstock explicitly marks AI-generated stock images, the company has yet to reply to questions about whether the time-spiral image breaches its own guidelines or how it polices them, says The Verge.
Running the actual image itself through various AI image checkers (aiornot, illuminarty, huggingface, hive), led to 3/4 stating its AI (not a large sample size I know) pic.twitter.com/xhbjwqhBuy
— Angel 🕷️ (@thepokeflutist) October 3, 2023
The debate over AI-generated stock images has sparked widespread alarm among creative workers. According to Raden, “licensing photos and illustrations on stock sites has been a way for many hard-working artists to earn a living.” I don’t think it’s any more ethical to replace them with produced pictures via software predicated on mass exploitation and wage theft than it is to replace Disney’s own employees.” Adobe and Getty are also investigating AI-generated material, although it is unclear whether these platforms are more effective than Shutterstock in regulating entries that violate contributor guidelines.
Disney’s silence and implications
It’s unclear whether generative AI was used in any other areas of Disney’s Loki advertising materials. X users are buzzing with speculation, particularly about areas of the image displaying tiny figures encircling Tom Hiddleston’s Loki, which some have remarked look strangely positioned. Despite several attempts to reach out to Disney for clarity on the usage of AI in the Loki advertising imagery and the licensing of the Shutterstock picture, the firm has remained mum on the subject.
In Disney’s defense, the clock picture featured in the Loki ad is not identified as AI-generated on Shutterstock, so they may not have been aware of its origins. Most graphic designers, on the other hand, would quickly spot the faults in the stock picture, raising concerns about Disney’s design and editing process. There is no official announcement regarding the Loki season 2 AI poster.
Why Designers Are Concerned
- Loss of Jobs: One of the main concerns among designers is that the widespread use of AI in design could potentially lead to job loss. If AI can generate designs quickly and inexpensively, there may be less demand for human designers.
- Creativity and Originality: Many designers take pride in their creativity and the uniqueness of their work. They worry that AI-generated designs may lack the creative spark and originality that human designers bring to their projects.
- Quality Control: AI-generated designs may not always meet quality standards. Designers are concerned that clients or businesses may prioritize cost savings over design quality, leading to subpar results.
- Ethical Concerns: There are ethical considerations related to AI-generated content. Some worry about copyright and intellectual property issues when AI uses existing designs or images as a basis for new creations.
- Job Roles Evolving: Designers also need to adapt to AI’s presence in the industry. Instead of solely creating designs, they may need to focus more on overseeing and fine-tuning AI-generated work, shifting their roles and responsibilities.
- Overreliance on AI: Relying too heavily on AI for design may stifle innovation and discourage designers from honing their skills and creativity.
Designers are unhappy with the Loki season 2 AI poster as it could lead to worse scenarios.
Featured image credit: Marvel
