"We need to educate AI users, not to restrict them" – Artist on Neural Network Generated Art Legal Status

Acclaimed digital artist Ellen Sheidlin discusses pros and cons of AI-art and how to live with it.

This is the year 2023, and we're now living in a world where AI can generate any image on demand. That's already led to a confrontation between artists and artificial intelligence, and this is just the beginning. 

We asked critically acclaimed digital artist Ellen Sheidlin to tell us what she thinks about AI-generated art legal status, pros and cons for artists and what we should do about that.

Ellen Sheidlin, digital creator and artist:

Neural networks using other people's creative works without proper attribution or permission are nothing but a way for businesses and individuals to profit from the work of others without a proper compensation and credits. I consider the matter as a form of exploitation, as it allows others to benefit from the creativity and hard work of artists and other creators without fair reimbursement.

However, it is also true that it may be difficult or even impossible to prohibit the use of other people's creative works for neural networks’ training, as those images are available on the internet. Technologies continue to evolve, and the use of neural networks is becoming increasingly widespread.  It will be even more difficult to establish rules and laws regarding their use in future.

But I do not think it is necessary to create restrictions and regulations on the use of creative works in the training of neural networks. Instead, it is important to educate users of neural networks on the importance of proper attribution and compensation for artists and creators, and to develop technology that can automatically detect and attribute creative works used in neural networks.