Hollywood Giants Sue Chinese AI Startup MiniMax for Copyright Infringement

Disney, Universal, Warner Bros. Sue Chinese AI Startup MiniMax

Walt Disney Co., Comcast Corp.'s Universal Studios and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. are suing Chinese artificial intelligence startup MiniMax, accusing the company of pirating the studios' intellectual property. Founded in 2021, Shanghai-based MiniMax has created several generative AI models that run its companion apps, such as video and image editor Hailuo AI and Talkie, a chatbot that competes with Character.AI in the US. Considered one of China's so-called AI Dragons, the company is valued at about $3 billion, is aiming for a public market listing as soon as this year, Bloomberg has reported.

Hollywood studios sue Chinese AI company for alleged copyright infringement

Disney, Universal and Warner Bros Discovery have jointly filed a lawsuit against the Chinese creator of a popular artificial intelligence video app over what they claim is "wilful and brazen" copyright infringement. The suit against MiniMax, which owns Hailuo AI, a video generator that markets itself as "Hollywood studio in your pocket", is the first of its kind against a Chinese AI company. The studios argue the service is a threat to the US motion picture industry and are seeking the "maximum amount allowable by law", according to a person familiar with the situation. The lawsuit includes several screenshots of MiniMax advertisements that feature some of the studios' best-known characters, including Disney-owned Darth Vader and Universal's Minions. The images bear MiniMax Hailuo branding. The images are generated when a user submits a text prompt for a popular character in a particular setting. The results, the companies allege, are "high quality, downloadable images and videos" using copyrighted characters. They also allege that MiniMax uses images of their characters to advertise the service to US consumers, which the studios claim falsely implies an endorsement by the copyright holders. Hailuo AI's official Instagram account has used an illegal copy of Warner Bros' Joker to promote the service, according to the suit. Shanghai-based MiniMax is one of China's leading large language model start-ups, backed by HongShan -- formerly Sequoia China -- private equity group Hillhouse and Alibaba. It has received praise among developers for its text-to-video models. Hailuo, which lags behind rivals Midjourney and Kling AI in rankings of the most popular generative AI apps, has been lauded for its ability to produce realistic and cinematic videos. The lawsuit comes at a sensitive time for MiniMax, which is planning to list in Hong Kong to raise funds for its international expansion strategy, according to people familiar with the matter. MiniMax is also behind the character chatbot Talkie, which was its most significant revenue driver last year, but the company has been seeking to diversify away from the highly competitive market, particularly after the app was briefly taken off US Apple app stores in December for unspecified "technical reasons". MiniMax did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The lawsuit follows a similar one launched in June by Disney and Universal against Midjourney, a US-based AI image generator that describes itself as a "small, self-funded team". In that suit, the studios called Midjourney a "bottomless pit of plagiarism". Midjourney said in a legal filing in August that its use of the material fell under "fair use" protections. Two recent district court decisions in California have ruled that using copyrighted works to train AI models is considered "fair" even without the owner's permission.

Disney, Universal, Warner Bros Discovery sue China's MiniMax for copyright infringement

Sept 16 (Reuters) - Walt Disney (DIS.N), opens new tab, Comcast's (CMCSA.O), opens new tab Universal and Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O), opens new tab have jointly filed a copyright lawsuit against China's MiniMax alleging that its image- and video-generating service Hailuo AI was built from intellectual property stolen from the three major Hollywood studios. The suit, filed in the district court in California on Tuesday, claims MiniMax "audaciously" used the studios' famous copyrighted characters to market Hailuo as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket" and advertise and promote its service. With a simple text prompt by a subscriber, Hailuo can generate downloadable images and videos of characters such as Darth Vader from "Star Wars", Minions from "Despicable Me" and "Wonder Woman" with MiniMax Hailuo branding, the lawsuit claims. MiniMax failed to act on the studios' requests to take reasonable measures in place at several AI services to avoid infringement, according to the lawsuit. The studios said MiniMax actively engaged in and encouraged infringement by disregarding U.S. copyright law and treating valuable copyrighted characters like its own. "A responsible approach to AI innovation is critical, and today's lawsuit against MiniMax again demonstrates our shared commitment to holding accountable those who violate copyright laws, wherever they may be based," the companies said in a statement. The lawsuit seeks to halt the alleged infringement and prevent the company from offering the Hailuo AI service without appropriate copyright protections. The new complaint follows a lawsuit filed by Disney and Universal against Midjourney in June for offering a commercial service providing unauthorized AI-generated copies of its copyrighted work. Warner Bros Discovery also sued Midjourney earlier this month, echoing the allegations made by Disney and Warner Bros Discovery. The cases are part of a wave of high-stakes lawsuits brought by copyright owners including authors, news outlets and music labels against OpenAI, Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab, Anthropic and other tech companies over the unauthorized use of their content in AI training. MiniMax, which has a subscription model, is reportedly targeting a valuation of more than $4 billion and is among the first batch of Chinese artificial-intelligence companies to seek a public listing. The company's models and products serve more than 157 million individual users across over 200 countries and regions and more than 50,000 enterprises and developers across more than 90 countries and regions, according to its website. Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bengaluru and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Pooja Desai Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Universal file joint lawsuit against generative AI app Hailuo

Disney, Universal and Warner Bros. Discovery are teaming up on the , this time against Chinese company MiniMax, owner of Hailuo AI. The three mega-studios, which collectively represent , filed suit in California against the AI-powered image and video generation platform alleging that it "pirates and plunders Plaintiffs' copyrighted works on a massive scale." The lawsuit includes dozens of screenshots of infringing generated images that span the gamut of the various studios' IP, from superheroes in the DC and Marvel universes to Star Wars, Minions and various other cartoons and animated films. Included in the suit are allegations that MiniMax not only failed to take reasonable actions to avoid infringement, but that the company actively engaged in and encouraged these infringing creations. The suit alleges a business model purposefully built around infringing on protected works whose defiance of US copyright law is "willful and brazen." MiniMax markets the Hailuo AI app for iOS and Android as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket," according to the suit, and advertisements for the platform explicitly invite users to create custom videos using protected works. Screenshots of these advertisements are included in the suit. This is the latest in a string of high-profile lawsuits brought by media companies over AI-generated content. Earlier this month sued the popular AI image generator Midjourney over similar claims, and filed a joint suit against it in June. Television and film aren't the only industries to accuse AI companies of blatant copyright offenses, with the publishing world seeing its fair share of lawsuits. Anthropic, the AI company behind Claude, had just reached a in a class action case representing over 500,000 authors, though a judge the settlement. Apple is also alleging the company used pirated books to train its AI model.

Disney and Universal Launch Copyright Lawsuit Against Popular Chinese AI Video Generator

Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros Discovery have jointly filed a lawsuit against popular Chinese video generator Hailuo AI, over what they claim is "wilful and brazen" copyright infringement. Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros Discovery sued Chinese AI firm MiniMax in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Tuesday. MiniMax owns Hailuo AI, a video generation tool that promotes itself as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket," according to a report by Reuters. The studios allege that MiniMax ignored U.S. copyright protections by using their characters as its own. The lawsuit states the Chinese company "audaciously" used these well-known characters to market and advertise Hailuo AI. According to the filing, Hailuo allows subscribers to create downloadable videos and images of characters including Darth Vader from Star Wars, Bart from The Simpsons, and Iron Man -- all carrying MiniMax Hailuo branding. "MiniMax's bootlegging business model and defiance of U.S. copyright law are not only an attack on Plaintiffs and the hard-working creative community that brings the magic of movies to life, but are also a broader threat to the American motion picture industry," the companies state in their complaint. The studios are asking the court to bar MiniMax from further infringement. They are also seeking damages of up to $150,000 per copyrighted work, along with attorney fees and costs. The case marks the first time a Chinese AI firm has faced such a lawsuit in the U.S. and follows a growing number of copyright disputes between Hollywood studios and AI companies. In June, Disney and Universal filed a joint lawsuit against Midjourney, accusing it of widespread copyright infringement in a case that could help redefine Hollywood's copyright rules. Warner Bros later joined the companies' lawsuit against the generative AI company. However, in an explosive first response to the lawsuit last month, Midjourney condemned Disney and Universal -- arguing that the company has no power to prevent AI training on its works. Midjourney's attorneys say the company operates within fair use limits and accused Disney and Universal of also benefiting from generative AI. They claimed that Midjourney is widely used by visual effects companies and other vendors working with Disney and Universal.

Disney, NBCU, WBD sue Chinese AI firm MiniMax

Why it matters: It's the second major AI lawsuit from the firms this year, suggesting Hollywood is starting to take a more aggressive stance in protecting their intellectual property. * Disney and NBCUniversal teamed up to sue Midjourney, a generative AI company, for copyright infringement in June. WBD joined that legal copyright battle earlier this month. Zoom in: In the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the companies argue MiniMax disregards U.S. copyright law by treating the studios' copyrighted characters like its own. The parties call MiniMax's copyright infringement "willful and brazen." * The studios argue MiniMax failed to act on their requests to avoid copyright infringement, even when presented with reasonable measures employed by other AI firms. * "MiniMax's bootlegging business model and defiance of U.S copyright law are not only an attack on Plaintiffs and the hard-working creative community that brings the magic of movies to life, but are also a broader threat to the American motion picture industry, which has created millions of jobs and contributed more than $260 billion to the nation's economy," the complaint reads. * The lawsuit also claims MiniMax used well-known copyrighted characters to advertise the capabilities of its popular image and video-generating service, Hailuo AI. What they're saying: "We support innovation that enhances human creativity while protecting the contributions of countless creators and the entire creative industry," Disney, NBCU and WBD said in a joint statement, * "A responsible approach to AI innovation is critical, and today's lawsuit against MiniMax again demonstrates our shared commitment to holding accountable those who violate copyright laws, wherever they may be based." Of note: MiniMax filed for an IPO in Hong Kong in July with an estimated valuation of $4 billion. * The startup has previously received funding from Chinese tech giants Alibaba and Tencent. Zoom out: The new complaint shows how far U.S. movie studios are willing to go to protect their intellectual property in the AI era, even from companies that are not based in the U.S.

Hollywood giants sue Chinese AI firm over copyright infringement

San Francisco (United States) (AFP) - Top Hollywood studios filed a federal lawsuit Monday against Chinese artificial intelligence company MiniMax, alleging massive copyright infringement. Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Universal Pictures accuse MiniMax of building what they call a "bootlegging business model" that systematically copies their most valuable copyrighted characters to train its AI system, then profits by generating unauthorized videos featuring iconic figures like Spider-Man, Batman, and the Minions. The lawsuit marks the first time major US entertainment companies have targeted a Chinese AI company and follows a similar lawsuit in June against California-based AI company Midjourney over copyright infringement. "MiniMax operates Hailuo AI, a Chinese artificial intelligence image and video generating service that pirates and plunders Plaintiffs' copyrighted works on a massive scale," states the complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court. The studios are seeking monetary damages, including MiniMax's profits from the alleged infringement, as well as statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work. They also demand a permanent injunction to stop the unauthorized use of their copyrighted material. According to the 119-page complaint, MiniMax users can simply type prompts like "Darth Vader walking around the Death Star" or "Spider-Man swinging between buildings" to receive high-quality videos featuring these protected characters. "MiniMax completely disregards US copyright law and treats Plaintiffs' valuable copyrighted characters like its own," the lawsuit states. MiniMax, one of China's emerging AI giants, was reportedly valued at $4 billion in 2025 after raising $850 million in venture capital. The lawsuit says the studios sent MiniMax a cease-and-desist letter detailing the extensive copyright violations, but the company "did not substantively respond to Plaintiffs' letter as requested and did not cease its infringement." The studios argue that MiniMax could easily implement copyright protection measures similar to those used by other AI services but has chosen not to do so. A request for comment from MiniMax did not receive a response.

Disney, Universal, Warner Bros Discovery sue China's MiniMax for copyright infringement - The Economic Times

Walt Disney, Comcast's Universal and Warner Bros Discovery have jointly filed a copyright lawsuit against China's MiniMax alleging that its image- and video-generating service Hailuo AI was built from intellectual property stolen from the three major Hollywood studios. The suit, filed in the district court in California on Tuesday, claims MiniMax "audaciously" used the studios' famous copyrighted characters to market Hailuo as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket" and advertise and promote its service. With a simple text prompt by a subscriber, Hailuo can generate downloadable images and videos of characters such as Darth Vader from "Star Wars", Minions from "Despicable Me" and "Wonder Woman" with MiniMax Hailuo branding, the lawsuit claims. MiniMax failed to act on the studios' requests to take reasonable measures in place at several AI services to avoid infringement, according to the lawsuit. The studios said MiniMax actively engaged in and encouraged infringement by disregarding U.S. copyright law and treating valuable copyrighted characters like its own. "A responsible approach to AI innovation is critical, and today's lawsuit against MiniMax again demonstrates our shared commitment to holding accountable those who violate copyright laws, wherever they may be based," the companies said in a statement. MiniMax did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The studios are seeking any profits or financial gains from MiniMax's alleged copyright infringement, as well as a court order to halt the infringement and prevent the company from offering the Hailuo AI service without appropriate copyright protections. The new complaint follows a lawsuit filed by Disney and Universal against Midjourney in June for offering a commercial service providing unauthorized AI-generated copies of its copyrighted work. Warner Bros Discovery also sued Midjourney earlier this month, echoing the allegations made by Disney and Warner Bros Discovery. The cases are part of a wave of high-stakes lawsuits brought by copyright owners including authors, news outlets and music labels against OpenAI, Microsoft, Anthropic and other tech companies over the unauthorized use of their content in AI training. MiniMax, which has a subscription model, is reportedly targeting a valuation of more than $4 billion and is among the first batch of Chinese artificial-intelligence companies to seek a public listing. The company's models and products serve more than 157 million individual users across over 200 countries and regions and more than 50,000 enterprises and developers across more than 90 countries and regions, according to its website.

Hollywood Takes On China's MiniMax: An AI Copyright Clash Investors Shouldn't Ignore

Setting the Stage: AI, Copyrights, and a Global Showdown A legal earthquake just struck the entertainment world: Hollywood's biggest studios including Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros. Discovery, have simultaneously filed a blockbuster lawsuit against MiniMax, a Chinese AI unicorn valued at $4 billion. The suit, alleging "willful and brazen" copyright infringement, accuses MiniMax of disregarding U.S. copyright law by treating the studios' copyrighted characters as if those were its own. Far more than just another corporate dust-up, this suit signals the opening of a new front in a high-stakes battle over who will shape and profit from the future of creative AI content. For investors, it offers new perspectives on what types of AI companies might make for solid bets in the midst of these types of legal battles. The MiniMax Affair: IP Violations and Willful Infringement The case centers on MiniMax's Hailuo AI platform, which offers users the ability to generate high-quality, on-demand video mashups starring instantly recognizable film characters from Darth Vader to Marvel superheroes. MiniMax's Hailuo platform aggressively promoted itself as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket," letting its 157 million global users prompt the creation of videos featuring trademarked characters, costumes, and scenes from Mickey Mouse, Minions, and beyond. Source: Hailuo-Generated by Andre Bourque Not only did MiniMax commercialize content built on Hollywood's intellectual property, but it also advertised with those same protected icons. The company even overlaid their own branding onto the auto-generated works. Hollywood's response has been swift and severe. The studios are seeking up to $150,000 per instance of IP infringement and have highlighted MiniMax's disregard for multiple cease-and-desist letters as evidence of willful, and now legally actionable, copyright violations. A Broader Trend: Copyright Wars Escalate The MiniMax suit is the latest flare-up in what many are calling the "copyright wars of the AI age." Earlier this year, Disney and Universal sued image generator Midjourney. In the online media realm, The New York Times went after Open AI for using its proprietary content to train its LLM platform. The rationale is clear: Creators are moving aggressively to halt the unchecked use of their IP as large language and generative media models threaten to erode the core creative value proposition. For Hollywood, what's at stake is a film industry that contributes more than $260 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Hollywood's Counteroffensive Strategies Source: AI-Generated by Andre Bourque To defend its creative and economic interests, Hollywood has launched a multi-faceted counteroffensive aimed at setting industry-wide standards and ensuring the protection of intellectual property in the age of advanced AI. First and foremost, legal action remains a pivotal strategy. The high-profile lawsuit against China's MiniMax exemplifies Hollywood's resolve to establish clear legal precedents that require AI companies to secure proper licenses before training on copyrighted material. These courtroom battles are intended not only to secure direct compensation but to send a strong deterrent message to other AI startups and tech giants globally. Secondly, the industry is asserting regulatory leadership. Landmark agreements like the Writers Guild of America's 2023 contract have introduced sweeping AI protections for writers and creative workers, establishing frameworks that are now serving as models for labor negotiations and regulatory policies across the world. This proactive stance extends Hollywood's influence into policy-making, encouraging governments to legislate on behalf of content creators in the face of rapid technological change. A third front in the battle is technological innovation. Major studios are investing in and adopting new tools to safeguard original works. These include blockchain-based provenance systems, which provide traceable ownership and licensing data for creative assets, and AI-driven solutions like "Trace ID" that can automatically detect and flag unauthorized uses or deepfakes based on visual or audio signatures. By leveraging technology, Hollywood aims to both track and prevent the misuse of their IP in real time. Beyond these, strategic partnerships and clean-room AI platforms have emerged as a critical defensive strategy. Hollywood is increasingly aligning with AI companies such as Adobe, which touts its Firefly product as being trained only on licensed or public domain material, and forming alliances with legaltech firms specializing in compliance and content-rights management. These collaborations foster the development of "clean-room" AI models that respect copyright law from the ground up. What This Means for AI Investors Source: AI-Generated by Andre Bourque Collectively, these strategies not only reinforce Hollywood's role as a guardian of creative rights but also influence the AI investment landscape, steering capital toward companies and technologies that prioritize legal compliance, robust protection of intellectual property, and sustainable partnerships across the creative economy. Examples include: Source: Created by Andre Bourque 1. Clean-Room/Legally Licensed AI Platforms As legal risks intensify for firms training AI models on unlicensed data, the future of the industry will demand that companies prove their platforms are developed using "clean" or fully licensed content. This shift creates significant opportunities for businesses that focus exclusively on utilizing licensed or public domain material, as exemplified by OpenAI's agreement with News Corp and Anthropic's recent settlements. Additionally, there is growing potential for providers of specialized copyright-detecting and monitoring software, as well as "AI model audit" services, all of which enable the verification and ongoing oversight of training data to ensure robust legal compliance in the evolving AI landscape. 2. AI Content IP Management & Protection As intellectual property emerges as a critical battleground in the age of AI, startups specializing in assisting media companies to track, license, and protect their digital assets are becoming indispensable; this rapidly growing landscape presents major opportunities for businesses offering blockchain-based digital rights management (DRM) solutions such as Hidden Pixels, platforms leveraging technologies like deepfake and provenance detection exemplified by "Trace ID" solutions, and innovative AI-powered copyright enforcement and litigation tools, all of which address the mounting challenges of safeguarding creative content and ensuring compliance in an increasingly automated, AI-driven world. 3. AI Cloud Infrastructure Providers As Western governments and major conglomerates invest billions in new data centers and robust cloud infrastructure to ensure compliant AI training and deployment on the global stage, significant opportunities are arising for key players in this evolving landscape: major cloud providers like Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and Amazon AWS who are now prioritizing AI-focused services; infrastructure and niche data center REITs that support the growing needs of AI workloads; and innovative startups developing privacy-preserving cloud AI solutions or specialized model isolation technologies that safeguard data protection and regulatory compliance, positioning them at the forefront of the next phase in secure and scalable artificial intelligence development. 4. AI-Powered Creative Tools Legitimized As demand for AI-assisted creative production continues to surge, the future will increasingly favor platforms that offer transparent licensing, robust partnerships, and strong protections for actors and creators; this market evolution creates compelling opportunities for generative AI startups that secure exclusive content deals, the development of "Hollywood-compliant" tools for generating video, audio, and images, and SaaS platforms designed to help studios, agencies, and advertising firms efficiently streamline the process of producing fully compliant content, thereby enabling creative industries to harness AI's capabilities without running afoul of copyright or talent protections. 5. Semiconductor & AI Chipmakers (with Western Exposure) The ongoing US-China chip wars highlight the critical need for next-generation, export-compliant AI hardware, opening up significant opportunities for US and EU-headquartered chip designers and fabricators such as Nvidia, AMD, Intel, ASML, and TSMC, while also driving demand for companies specializing in AI accelerators and advanced security chips; at the same time, startups focused on energy-efficient or privacy-first semiconductor solutions are uniquely positioned to support the industry's pivot towards secure, regulatory-compliant, and high-performance AI infrastructure in an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape. 6. IP-Rich Content Owners & Partnerships Source: AI-Generated by Andre Bourque Studios and intellectual property owners that can license their content at scale to AI firms are positioned to unlock significant new revenue streams, particularly as demand for high-quality, licensed training data intensifies; this creates valuable opportunities for film, music, comic, and gaming studios with extensive content catalogs, such as Disney, Universal Music Group, Warner Bros Discovery, and even The New York Times, while also fueling growth for firms specializing in brokering new AI-era licensing deals, which help bridge the gap between creative rights holders and technology companies eager for compliant, premium content. 7. Legaltech & Regulatory Compliance AI As the regulatory landscape surrounding AI evolves at a rapid pace, businesses face increasing pressure to maintain global compliance, driving strong opportunities for AI-powered legal research platforms, advanced regulatory compliance and contract management tools, and risk monitoring solutions; furthermore, specialized services focused on international intellectual property law and audit for AI are becoming essential, enabling companies to navigate complex legal frameworks, mitigate potential risks, and ensure their operations align with the latest requirements across jurisdictions worldwide. Looking Forward The MiniMax lawsuit is more than a dispute over beloved cartoon characters. It's a flashpoint in a much larger struggle for creative, technological, and cultural dominance worldwide. Will the next generation of artificial intelligence be constructed on the back of stolen IP, or founded on legitimate partnerships and investment? The answer will determine not just Hollywood's future, but the very fabric of digital culture and ownership for decades to come. The gauntlet has been thrown. Hollywood has drawn a line in the sand, and the world is watching to see who will control the next frontier of creativity in the AI age. The key for investors is to focus on companies and technologies that are proactively addressing the new legal, ethical, and geopolitical realities of AI. Compliance, partnership, and infrastructure will define the winners of this new era. My advice: avoid firms exposed to unresolved copyright or regulatory risks. Feature Image: AI-Generated by Andre Bourque Benzinga Disclaimer: This article is from an unpaid external contributor. It does not represent Benzinga's reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Disney, Warner Bros., Universal Pictures Sue Chinese AI Company in Escalation of Copyright Battle

Warner Bros. Discovery Nears Win in 'Blade Runner 2049' Legal Battle Over Tesla's AI Images Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Universal Pictures have sued a Chinese artificial intelligence image and video generator for copyright infringement, opening another front in a high-stakes battle involving the use of movies and TV shows owned by major studios to teach AI systems. The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in California federal court, accuses MiniMax of building its business by plundering the studios' intellectual property. Its service, Hailuo AI, allows users to generate content of iconic copyrighted characters. The studios characterize MiniMax's alleged infringement as an existential threat. Given the rapid advancement of AI technology, it's "only a matter of time until Hailuo AI can generate unauthorized, infringing videos" that are "substantially longer, and even eventually the same duration as a movie or television program," the lawsuit says. For years, AI companies have been training their technology on data scraped across the internet without compensating creators. It's led to lawsuits from authors, record labels, news organizations, artists and studios, which contend that some AI tools erode demand for their content. Earlier this month, Warner Bros. Discovery joined Disney and Universal in suing Midjourney for allegedly training its AI system on its movies and TV shows. By their thinking, the AI company is a free-rider plagiarizing their content. In a statement, Motion Picture Association CEO Charles Rivkin said AI companies will be "held accountable for infringing on the rights of American creators wherever they are located." He added, "We remain concerned that copyright infringement, left unchecked, threatens the entire American motion picture industry." MiniMax markets its Hailuo AI as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket" and uses studios' characters in promotional materials, the lawsuit says. When prompted with Darth Vader, the service returns an image of the character with a Minimax watermark, according to the complaint. It can also generate videos of characters seen across Disney, Warner Bros. and Universal movies and TV shows, including Minions, Guardians of the Galaxy and Superman, the lawsuit claims. The only way MiniMax's technology would be able do so, the studios allege, is if the company trained its AI system on their intellectual property. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, including disgorgement of profits, and a court order barring MiniMax from continuing to exploit studios' works.

Disney, Universal, Warner Bros Discovery sue China's MiniMax for copyright infringement

(Reuters) -Walt Disney, Comcast's Universal and Warner Bros Discovery have jointly filed a copyright lawsuit against China's MiniMax alleging that its image- and video-generating service Hailuo AI was built from intellectual property stolen from the three major Hollywood studios. The suit, filed in the district court in California on Tuesday, claims MiniMax "audaciously" used the studios' famous copyrighted characters to market Hailuo as a "Hollywood studio in your pocket" and advertise and promote its service. With a simple text prompt by a subscriber, Hailuo can generate downloadable images and videos of characters such as Darth Vader from "Star Wars", Minions from "Despicable Me" and "Wonder Woman" with MiniMax Hailuo branding, the lawsuit claims. MiniMax failed to act on the studios' requests to take reasonable measures in place at several AI services to avoid infringement, according to the lawsuit. The studios said MiniMax actively engaged in and encouraged infringement by disregarding U.S. copyright law and treating valuable copyrighted characters like its own. "A responsible approach to AI innovation is critical, and today's lawsuit against MiniMax again demonstrates our shared commitment to holding accountable those who violate copyright laws, wherever they may be based," the companies said in a statement. The lawsuit seeks to halt the alleged infringement and prevent the company from offering the Hailuo AI service without appropriate copyright protections. The new complaint follows a lawsuit filed by Disney and Universal against Midjourney in June for offering a commercial service providing unauthorized AI-generated copies of its copyrighted work. Warner Bros Discovery also sued Midjourney earlier this month, echoing the allegations made by Disney and Warner Bros Discovery. The cases are part of a wave of high-stakes lawsuits brought by copyright owners including authors, news outlets and music labels against OpenAI, Microsoft, Anthropic and other tech companies over the unauthorized use of their content in AI training. MiniMax, which has a subscription model, is reportedly targeting a valuation of more than $4 billion and is among the first batch of Chinese artificial-intelligence companies to seek a public listing. The company's models and products serve more than 157 million individual users across over 200 countries and regions and more than 50,000 enterprises and developers across more than 90 countries and regions, according to its website. (Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bengaluru and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Pooja Desai)