An artist is suing an AI meme generator for selling his viral comic as ad templates

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years.

TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust.

In context: A lawsuit filed this month centres on whether AI meme generators can turn copyrighted images into ad templates and sell them to paying users. The case stems from an artist's claim that one of his viral comics is being used without permission by a paid platform that automates ad creation.

Elmer Saflor, a digital artist in the Philippines who goes by "Superelmer," has filed a complaint against Memes Apps, LLC. The company runs Memes.ai and Memes AI Studio, platforms that allegedly generate ad templates using copies of Saflor's "Running Away Balloon" comic. Saflor alleges those tools are producing copies of his comic and offering them to paying users without permission.

The complaint targets the business model as much as the technology. Memes Apps sells subscriptions priced at $40 and $199 a month that, according to the complaint, provide access to template memes for commercial use. Saflor argues that it turns his work into a commercial product without licensing.