Ghibli-style AI portraits go viral, but is your face training the bots?

OpenAI’s latest Ghibli-style AI image generator has taken social media by storm, with users eagerly sharing their AI-transformed portraits in the signature style of renowned animator Hayao Miyazaki.

However, the viral trend has raised concerns among digital privacy activists, who warn that OpenAI might be using it to collect vast amounts of personal images for AI training. Critics argue that while users enjoy the artistic transformation, they may be unknowingly handing over fresh facial data, raising significant privacy and ethical concerns.

How to protect your privacy?

OpenAI may use uploaded content, including images, to train its AI models unless users explicitly opt out. This has raised privacy concerns, as images could be stored and analyzed to improve the AI.

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However, the users can prevent their data from being used for model training by adjusting their settings:

Go to ChatGPT’s account settings.

Navigate to “Data Controls.”

Turn off the option labeled “Improve the model for everyone.”

ChatGPT also offers a “Temporary Chat” mode, accessible via the drop-down menu at the top of the interface. For regular chats, data is stored indefinitely unless users delete it or their account. As concerns over AI training grow, OpenAI users are urged to review their privacy settings carefully.

Adding to the buzz, Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok has also integrated a similar feature in its latest update, Grok 3, offering users free access to Ghibli-style image generation.

ChatGPT responds

When asked about the Ghibli-style image trend, ChatGPT responded that images uploaded to the platform are not used to train AI models. It stated that OpenAI keeps them private and secure without storing or using them for future training.

Conspiracy theories suggest that celebrities were paid to promote this AI trend, allowing companies to access images directly instead of relying on third parties. However, there is no evidence to support these claims.

About studio Ghibli’s style image

Studio Ghibli’s hand-drawn animation is cherished for its lush, watercolor-like backgrounds, delicate character expressions, and deeply emotive storytelling.

Directors like Hayao Miyazaki emphasize human craftsmanship, where each frame is painstakingly painted, capturing the imperfections and warmth that define Ghibli’s magic. However, as AI-generated art mimics this signature style like the viral “Ghibli-fied” landscapes, controversy follows.

Critics argue that AI scrapes Ghibli’s style image copyrighted works without consent, commodifying a style rooted in human labour. Many believe it lacks the depth and intention of hand-drawn art, echoing Miyazaki’s own words, calling AI-generated imagery “an insult to life itself.”

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