Nintendo Takes Action Against AI-Generated Mario Images

Nintendo jumps on AI images of Mario shared on X

The free-for-all of AI image creation on X had a rude wakeup this week when Nintendo's copyright infringement hunter Tracer, as first reported by the Verge, laid takedown notices on several users who had shared images of Mario built using X's Grok-2 AI model. Tracer sent dozens of users the notices under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The Grok AI chatbot on X employs the FLUX.1 model to produce images, but the AI didn't seem to have much of an intellectual property filter when it came out. That led to many images of characters like Mario behaving in ways their parent companies would not be thrilled about seeing. For instance, pictures of the Nintendo mascot drinking and smoking cigarettes were among the most common targets of the DMCA notices. Tracer even uses AI tools to spot when its clients have had their trademarks or copyrights violated. These AI tools are designed to scan large volumes of content for any potential infringement. Of course, those AI tools are as imperfect as the image generators, which meant even hand-drawn fan art of Mario reportedly provoked DMCA notices in some cases. That raises concerns about potential overreach since fan art is (usually) not illegal to make or share outside of certain circumstances. Since the takedown notices came from Tracer, Nintendo's explicit instructions, if any, to Tracer have not been revealed. But it's not hard to imagine Nintendo wanting to be aggressive about AI image creation using its IP. The company's history of legal action over unauthorized use is a deterrent in many cases, though random fans using AI engines have not been a major target before. But, while Nintendo's lawsuit against Palworld and its imitation Pokémon game is getting headlines now, it may seem small potatoes should the video game giant go after Elon Musk's xAI and X or the open-source Flux. Nintendo may want to come in early and hard against AI-generated content, which it believes violates its IP rights, but it may be too late. Though OpenAI's DALL-E, Google's Gemini, Midjourney, and many other image generators have strict rules in place to limit these kinds of images from their own AI models, Flux and others are clearly not as bothered about it. Whether DMCA notices or even lawsuits will stop people from making images of Mario acting in ways you'd never see in an official video game remains to be seen.

An AI Tool Is Reportedly Hauling AI-Generated Mario Images Offline - IGN

An AI tool is reportedly removing AI-generated images of Mario from the internet. The Verge reports that posts on social media website X/Twitter containing images of Nintendo's iconic mascot generated by Elon Musk's xAI's Grok AI tool were pulled offline due to takedown notices originating from a company called Tracer. Tracer describes itself as "a next-generation brand protection solution" that "constantly finds, analyzes, and stops brand abuse across Web2 and Web3 digital channels." It uses what it calls a Human-in-the-Loop AI brand protection technology, which "dramatically shortens the time from detection to enforcement by intelligently automating the review process and automatically offering an enforcement recommendation." Nintendo and Tracer are yet to comment. The Verge's Tom Warren saw an image of Mario doing various non-family friendly things (smoking a cigarette and drinking a beer) he had generated using Grok was pulled from X/Twitter following a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) complaint issued by a "customer success manager" at Tracer. Warren's Grok-generated image of Xbox mascot Master Chief playing on a PS5 remains, however. According to Warren, the takedown notice he received namechecked Nintendo of America's copyright in relation to the Mario character, suggesting Tracer was acting on Nintendo's behalf. Another account that used Grok to generate an image of Luigi as an IDF soldier recently said their content was also pulled offline. Amid the purge, Mario fan art is reportedly being caught in the crossfire. While there is no confirmation that Nintendo is involved in the specifics of these takedowns, the company is famously protective of its brands, and recently sued Palworld maker Pocketpair for alleged patent infringement, an action that seemingly contributing to the postponement of Palworld's release on PS5 in Japan. The company has a history of successful takedowns, forcing fan games offline and even suing the creators of emulators. Generative AI is one of the hottest topics in the creative industries right now and a burning issue within video game development itself. Apart from ethical and copyright issues, labor unions have expressed concern about the potential for generative AI to replace jobs, and video game performers have called for increased protections against its use. Earlier this month, EA CEO Andrew Wilson said AI is "the very core of our business" -- a comment IGN subsequently explored in more detail. And Nintendo itself has commented on generative AI, outlining the pros and cons as it sees them.

AI generated image of Nintendo's Mario are being expunged from the internet by... AI

An AI powered copyright tool is being used to remove AI generated images of Nintendo characters such as Mario from the internet. That's according to a report from The Verge, whose own reporter Tom Warren received a takedown notice for his AI generated artwork, which showed Mario sitting on a beach with a cigarette in one hand and a steaming (not sure why) pint of beer in the other. The publication said a company called Tracer has been filing these takedown notices against AI images featuring Nintendo's moustachioed plumber and his pals, including ones made with xAI's Grok AI tool. According to Tracer's website, the company uses "human-in-the-Loop AI and machine learning to dramatically shorten the time from detection to enforcement by intelligently automating the review process and automatically offering an enforcement recommendation". While The Verge's own Nintendo-related artwork has been removed, a Halo-inspired image depicting Xbox's Master Chief playing a PlayStation 5 remains (see post below). Meanwhile, another affected account which generated an image of Luigi as an IDF soldier with the Grok AI tool also said its content has been removed from the internet. At the time of writing, I have also come across a clearly AI-generated image of Mario in possession of drugs still on X, so not all images have been removed by the AI tool. It is currently unclear whether Tracer is acting on instructions from Nintendo, although the Mario maker is notoriously protective of its property. Most recently, it announced it is suing Palworld developer Pocketpair for patent infringement. Perhaps an unexpected side effect of this AI purge by an AI tool, however, is that fanart has also reportedly been removed from social media accounts. "Apparently drawing Nintendo characters [is] copyright infringement," shared one X user, with an image of their own takedown notice. Neither Nintendo or Tracer have commented on these takedown notices yet, although Eurogamer has reached out for more. AI remains a hot topic within the video game industry, with many concerned about its impact on the sector. Earlier this year, Square Enix admitted it "dabbled" with AI technology for Foamstars, while Ubisoft unveiled an AI scriptwriting aid in 2023. More recently, a report by Unity claimed 62 percent of studios use AI at some point during game development, with animation as the top use case. For more, our Ed spoke with AI expert Dr. Tommy Thompson all about the technology, and how it is changing video game development forever.