How Disney is Trying to Beat the AI Punch
At some point, this was bound to happen. The same companies that built empires on tightly-controlled, fiercely-protected intellectual property have now found themselves staring down an existential threat: a machine that can recreate everything they own—with no overhead, no labor, and no clearances.
This month, Disney and NBCUniversal filed a massive federal lawsuit against the generative image company Midjourney, calling it a bottomless pit of plagiarism. The 110-page complaint is filled with side-by-side images—AI-generated versions of Elsa, Shrek, Darth Vader, Spider-Man, and more—right next to their original studio renders.
The point is obvious. Type in a few prompt words, and suddenly Midjourney hands you back a version of someone else’s billion-dollar character. No studio deal. No licensing fee.
You might think Disney’s just doing this because they’re scared. That they’re reacting out of panic. You’d be wrong. They’re doing this because they still understand one of the most important truths about IP in the modern era: control isn’t optional—it’s everything. Access is the ultimate direct-to-consumer product.
This isn’t about stopping AI. It’s about owning it.
Because let’s not forget—Disney’s not just litigating. They’re licensing. Behind closed doors, you better believe the same studio that’s suing Midjourney is in talks with every major LLM (large language model) and image platform to cut deals. That’s the double-edged sword of this moment: the same IP that can be stolen can also be sold.
Sue first. License later.
Companies like Elf Labs are blurring the line by licensing fairy tale characters adjacent to the well-known Disney IP. This is a very fine line to walk in the wild west of AI. Eventually, Disney will catch up. They are already in talks with OpenAI amidst the Midjourney lawsuit. It is that double-edged tactic that will define the future of IP licensing in the world of generative artificial intelligence.
The endgame here is simple: IP-backed AI content will exist—but it will live behind paywalls. You want Pixar-grade outputs? Sign up for Disney’s AI portal. You want real Marvel voices and overlays? Get the official plugin.
Welcome to the next content war.