Is AI stealing from artists?

Earlier this week, the Lensa app has been making the rounds on social media—particularly Instagram—as people flock to the app to use its 'magic avatar' feature. Simply put, the 'magic avatar' feature asks users to submit 10-20 photos of themselves, after which the app returns AI generated portraits of the user—which look like they are made by digital artists or designers.

The app has already come under fire for sexualising and racialising photos of its user, as reported by The Wired. Now, however, the app has stirred up even more controversy, as a now viral post by Instagram user @megraeart shared how Lensa used a legal loophole to train their AI using hundreds of thousands of copyrighted images and artwork, by claiming to be a non-profit.

However, the app is charging users between USD 3.99 and 7.99 for these AI generated 'artworks', most of which are built on the references of works by thousands of artists all over the world. Lensa was able to use these reference photos from the internet for free, as they claimed to be working with their AI on a 'non-profit capacity'. However, seeing what they are charging users for these AI generated photos, it is quite clear they are not.