Tesla and Warner Bros.
Musk poursuivi pr contrefaçon sur sa #Cybercab par le producteur de ‘Blade runner 2049’ 🎬
Blade Runner 2049's producer sues Musk, Tesla, and WBD for allegedly using AI to create imagery close to the film, despite a denied request, to promote Cybercab https://t.co/DWOzlR6Gg6
— Capucine Cousin (@Capucine_Cousin) October 22, 2024
Discovery face a lawsuit from Alcon Entertainment, the producer of “Blade Runner 2049,” for allegedly using AI-generated images that rip off iconic imagery from the movie. The lawsuit claims that the companies used the images without permission to benefit from the association with the sci-fi film.
(THR) – A production company for “Blade Runner 2049” has sued Tesla, which allegedly fed images from the movie into an artificial intelligence image generator to create unlicensed promotional materials.@THR (cc: @alex_proyas) $TSLA https://t.co/hs0gMLw9Pz pic.twitter.com/rEaiJ91oAd
— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) October 21, 2024
According to the complaint, Elon Musk, founder of Tesla, used AI to create a Blade Runner 2049-like image for a Tesla event after producers rejected any association between their film and Musk or his companies. Alcon stated that they would never allow Tesla to exploit their film, emphasizing that any association with Musk, who is a polarizing figure, could damage their relationships in Hollywood. The lawsuit described Tesla’s use of the Blade Runner imagery as a “bad faith and malicious gambit” to leverage the strong Hollywood brand at a time when Musk and Tesla are not in favor with the industry.
“Any prudent brand considering any Tesla partnership has to take Musk’s massively amplified, highly politicized, capricious and arbitrary behavior, which sometimes veers into hate speech, into account. Alcon did not want BR2049 to be affiliated with Musk.” https://t.co/R9oMsa09Cz
— David Slack (@slack2thefuture) October 21, 2024
Alcon believes that Tesla and WBD’s agreement included significant financial terms, which could have been worth six or seven figures.
Tesla faces lawsuit over AI imagery
During the event, Musk showcased the AI-generated image, which depicted a figure resembling characters from Blade Runner 2049.
The future that Elon Musk envisions is modeled on a dystopian sci-fi movie.https://t.co/xyA9uSdEj2
— David Ferris (@DavidFerris) October 22, 2024
The scene shown was similar to key promotional imagery from the film, leading to allegations that the similarity was not coincidental. Musk directly referenced Blade Runner during his presentation. Alcon is seeking damages for the alleged copyright infringement and reputation damage.
They are also asking for an injunction to prevent Tesla from using any Blade Runner imagery in future promotions, and to add a disclaimer to the livestreamed event video indicating that the Blade Runner association is false. Musk has previously shown a fondness for associating his products with sci-fi themes, even referring to the Cybertruck as an “armored personnel carrier from the future—what Blade Runner would have driven.” However, this latest association appears to have crossed a legal line, according to the lawsuit. Alcon hopes that a jury will find Tesla, Musk, and WBD in violation of copyright and false representation laws, moving to protect their brand and secure appropriate compensation for the alleged infringement.
The lawsuit underscores the ongoing complexities and legal challenges related to the use of AI in the entertainment industry.
Cameron is a highly regarded contributor in the rapidly evolving fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. His articles delve into the theoretical underpinnings of AI, the practical applications of machine learning across industries, ethical considerations of autonomous systems, and the societal impacts of these disruptive technologies.
