Could DC Comics' anti-AI stance mark a tide change against AI slop?

"Entertainment companies of all kinds have been under pressure to show they're part of the AI revolution. It often seems that everyone from video game developers to animation studios feel they have to embrace AI art, not because audiences want it - they've shown again and again that they don't - but to show to investors that they're keeping up and becoming more efficient, and out of fear that if they don't use it, others will."

"Lee said DC Comics would "not support AI-generated storytelling or artwork. Not now, not ever, as long as [SVP, general manager] Anne DePies and I are in charge." He also gave the perfect argument why. Not because of the often cited concerns over ethics or legal fears, but cold commercial reasons that should cut through to any industry exec: customers don't want it."

""People have an instinctive reaction to what feels authentic," he said. "We recoil from what feels fake. That's why human creativity matters. AI doesn't dream," he added. "It doesn't feel. It doesn't make art. It aggregates it." Lee's comments were greeted by applause at Comic Con. Many artists will have found the remarks encouraging as so many other companies jump on the AI train."

Entertainment companies across games and animation face pressure to adopt AI art to appear efficient to investors and avoid falling behind competitors. DC Comics' president Jim Lee announced a policy of not supporting AI-generated storytelling or artwork under his leadership. Lee justified the stance on commercial grounds, arguing customers instinctively prefer authenticity and reject what feels fake, and asserting that AI aggregates rather than creates art. The decision was met with applause at New York Comic Con and offered reassurance to artists amid widespread industry experimentation and legal tensions around AI use.

Read at Creative Bloq