Midjourney’s Latest Hyperrealistic Model Is Under Fire For Apparent Plagiarism

Illustration 268589745 © Amber Stevens | Dreamstime.com

Midjourney V6, the latest installment of the innovative AI image generator, has been making waves for its astounding results—but not without stirring controversy in the creative world. Now in its alpha testing phase, this new version has been designed to produce images with unprecedented realism and detail, a leap forward that also includes the ability to generate legible text within visuals. With that, its advances bring with them a host of ethical and legal quandaries, particularly around the near-identical reproduction of copyrighted material.

One of the most talked-about aspects of Midjourney V6 is its uncanny ability to replicate existing works of art and media, retaining not just their most recognizable traits but their entire look. 

Midjourney is back to the blatant plagiarism again. They really can't seem to fix it, it's almost like it's inherent to the tech...

"The people suing Midjourney are going to have a field day with this."

Thanks to @NelkMarge for this. pic.twitter.com/6nbH96P6bW

— Reid Southen (@Rahll) December 21, 2023

Social media platforms have been abuzz with examples, such as a generated image eerily similar to Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of the Joker. Other pop culture references, including scenes from the Avengers films and the movie Dune, have also been replicated with startling accuracy. 

It's clearly spitting out training data. Here's someone prompting 'Joaquin Phoenix Joker movie, 2019, screenshot from a movie, movie scene'. pic.twitter.com/haIEHzGDpB

— Marge Nelk (@NelkMarge) December 22, 2023

To recap: Midjourney has banned me twice for exposing their copyright infringement without warning or explanation. And in the midst of it, they updated their ToS to try and deflect blame onto users.

Also, here's some more evidence. Check my recent posts for more info. Merry Xmas pic.twitter.com/KS80jeJi0Q

— Reid Southen (@Rahll) December 25, 2023

MidJourney v6 is a lot better at including words in images 🔥

Here are a few examples.

Prompts in the ALT! pic.twitter.com/EAGdq65hEZ

— Ammaar Reshi (@ammaar) December 21, 2023

These instances are so strikingly close to the originals that they’ve ignited a discussion on the AI’s training process—specifically, the concerns of overtraining or overfitting, where the model is fed so frequently with the exact same data that it inadvertently spits out the entire material wholesale.

Holy shit Midjourney v6 is plagiarism on steroids and powered by AIpic.twitter.com/br2hdUPInP

— Linas BeliÅ«nas (@linasbeliunas) December 23, 2023

Artists and creators like Reid Southen have raised alarms, suggesting that Midjourney V6 might be infringing on intellectual property rights by allowing the creation of exact copies or derivatives of copyrighted works. Southen’s critique is not isolated; it echoes a growing chorus of creators who fear that their work and rights might be diluted or misappropriated by such powerful AI tools.

I consider this a smoking gun for Midjourney's flagrant copyright infringement. A 6-word prompt can replicate a Dune still nearly 1:1 every time. These aren't variations, it's the same prompt run repeatedly.

Try it yourself. Merry Christmas Midjourney. pic.twitter.com/2wpeTwxS0Q

— Reid Southen (@Rahll) December 24, 2023

Before @midjourney banned me for outing their plagiarism and copyright infringement, I managed to get these.

Notice I misspelled Scarlett Johansson, and it returned Matrix Resurrections imagery for the original Matrix. It infringes so hard, you don't even need to be accurate. pic.twitter.com/vGWhEthc1M

— Reid Southen (@Rahll) December 23, 2023

Southen claims his criticism has led to his account being banned from Midjourney’s Discord platform, prohibiting his use of the service.

Despite these concerns, AI’s role in creative industries is not entirely new, and neither is the debate around the ethical use of copyrighted material. What sets Midjourney V6 apart is the quality and accuracy of its reproductions, bringing to light the nuanced discussions of what constitutes “fair use” in the digital age. Some tech companies may argue that using data to train computer systems is a transformative use of material, but when the output closely mirrors the original, the line between transformation and replication becomes blurred.

MJ v6 also regenerates photos, like 'Migrant mother' by Dorothea Lange, even without the name in the prompt: pic.twitter.com/8MD8PeX7Ii

— Marge Nelk (@NelkMarge) December 21, 2023

#Midjourney isn't even two years old yet, and look at the progress in recent months!

Here are the release dates for the different versions and a glimpse of the visual evolution:

v1 > February 2022
v2 >  April 2022
v3 > July 2022
v4 > November 2022
v5 > March 2023
v5.1 >… pic.twitter.com/MID43fOl4b

— Pierrick Chevallier | IA (@CharaspowerAI) December 25, 2023

On the legal frontier, these instances of close reproduction by Midjourney V6 are poised to challenge existing interpretations of “fair use.” The courts may soon find themselves arbitrating between the rights of original creators and the technological advancements of AI, setting precedents that will inevitably shape the landscape of creative production.

According to Gizmodo, the Midjourney V6 alpha version may only be available through the holiday period, so chances are the company will revisit its training data after pulling access.

Looking for more proof of Midjourney's copyright infringement and plagiarism? This only took 15 minutes. pic.twitter.com/eyqOSlE01S

— Reid Southen (@Rahll) December 22, 2023

In case The Joker or Thanos didn't move the needle for you, here's Midjourney V6 plagiarizing The Batman as well, with extremely simple prompts.

This is shockingly easy to do. pic.twitter.com/y4EeGk7NZy

— Reid Southen (@Rahll) December 22, 2023

As the debate continues, the future of such AI tools hangs in the balance, weighed between their potential for innovation and the necessity of protecting artistic integrity. The resolution of these issues will require not just legal intervention but also a rethinking of the ethics surrounding AI development and its deployment in sensitive areas like art and media. Only time will tell how this balance will be achieved, but what’s certain is that the conversation around Midjourney V6 is a harbinger of more complex discussions to come in the realm of AI and copyright law.

[via TheStreet and The Decoder, images via various sources]