Disney Sends Cease-and-Desist to AI Startup over Unauthorized Character Use

In a recent development, the Walt Disney Company has taken legal action against the AI startup Character.AI. According to the article, Disney has sent a cease-and-desist letter to the company, alleging that Character.AI has been using Disney's copyrighted characters as interactive chatbots in its commercial service without authorization.

Disney claims that the Character.AI service features countless chatbots that "exploit Disney's copyrighted works and trademarks, presenting immersive versions of Disney's famous and beloved characters." The media giant argues that this practice misleads and confuses consumers, including vulnerable young people, into believing that they are interacting with genuine Disney characters.

Furthermore, Disney asserts that the infringing chatbots have been used to engage users in "inappropriate conversations about sex, self-harm, and deceit, and encouraging anti-social and dangerous behavior." The company has demanded that Character.AI remove the offending chatbots immediately.

In response, a spokesperson for Character.AI stated that the characters have been removed and that the company "responds swiftly to requests to remove content that rightsholders report to us." However, the startup maintains that the characters were "generated by users" and that it aims to "partner with the industry and rightsholders to empower them to bring their characters to our platform."