Then there’s the other way: With a studio legal victory. The AI models are deemed prohibited from training on this content — this “fair use,” a judge says, ain’t that. In such a scenario we are ensured that for the indefinite future what gets generated in the way of Hollywood images comes from Hollywood and Hollywood alone.

Walt Disney and Comcast’s NBCUniversal have sued artificial intelligence company Midjourney, accusing the image generator of copying their copyrighted characters without permission. The studios are seeking a preliminary injunction to block Midjourney from using their intellectual property.