AI image-generation startup Midjourney is seeking to force Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros. to disclose how they use artificial intelligence internally as part of an ongoing copyright dispute with the Hollywood studios.
The legal battle began after Disney and Universal sued Midjourney for alleged copyright infringement, arguing that the company’s AI models can generate images of studio-owned characters, including Bart Simpson and Darth Vader. Warner Bros. later filed a similar lawsuit against the startup.
Midjourney has defended its position by arguing that training AI models on images of copyrighted characters is protected under fair use, a central issue in the case.
The current dispute focuses on what documents the studios must provide during the discovery process. A judge previously ruled that the studios must share information about their use of generative AI, but only when that use resulted in consumer-facing images or videos.
In a new legal filing, Midjourney is asking the court to remove that limitation. The company argues that the restriction unfairly allows the studios to select only the documents that support their claims of market harm, while withholding materials that could strengthen Midjourney’s defense.
According to Midjourney, the withheld documents may reveal whether the studios are privately engaging in the same type of AI-related practices they are accusing Midjourney of using.
For example, the startup argues that if the studios are developing image-generating AI models for internal purposes, such as storyboarding or content ideation for film and television, that could show that training AI on unlicensed copyrighted material is becoming an industry practice, including among the studios themselves.
Midjourney is also seeking access to all prompts the studios used on its platform, along with the resulting outputs, rather than only the prompts that produced the allegedly infringing images.
The studios’ lead attorney, David Singer, previously described Midjourney’s request as a broad “fishing expedition.” He argued that the studios are not trying to stop AI technology or shut down Midjourney’s business.
Instead, Singer said the studios want Midjourney to stop copying their films and television shows, and to stop distributing, displaying, performing, or creating derivative works that include unauthorized versions of their famous characters.
The case highlights one of the most important legal questions facing the AI industry: whether training generative AI models on copyrighted material can be considered fair use, or whether it represents a violation of intellectual property rights.
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