Wacom AI-generated Chinese New Year promotion backfires
What happened
Wacom AI-generated New Year promotion 'devalues' own customers
Occurred: January 2024Report incident 🔥 | Improve page 💁 | Access database 🔢
Japanese tablet manufacturer Wacom was discovered covertly using AI-generated images in its new year marketing, prompting complaints from artists and customers.Wacom's apparent use of AI to generate illustrations of Chinese dragons to welcome in the Chinese Year of the Dragon prompted revulsion and despair from artists. One artist, Megan Ruiz, pointed out that the quality of the images was sub-par, with one sporting a tail that failed to attach to its body, another with strange-looking teeth. Wacom later deleted the artwork and claimed it was not its 'intent' to use AI-generated images and that it had purchased the images 'through a third-party vendor where it was indicated that they were not AI generated.' Artists took particular exception to Wacom's use of AI because the company's products, many of which are premium-priced, are primarily used by designers and other creatives, leading some to say they were devaluing the work of their own customers. Some customers said they would not buy its products again.
System 🤖Wacom 🔗Documents 📃Wacom (2024). A response to community questions concerning Wacom using AI-generated art in US marketing assetsOperator: Wacom customers Developer: Country: USASector: Technology Purpose: Generate images Technology: Text-to-image; Generative adversarial network (GAN); Neural network; Deep learning; Machine learning Issue: Employment; Ethics/values; Transparency
News, commentary, analysis 🗞️https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/9/24031468/wacom-wizards-of-the-coast-mtg-artists-against-generative-aihttps://www.theverge.com/2024/1/10/24032672/this-wacom-ai-debacle-has-certainly-taken-a-turnhttps://petapixel.com/2024/01/10/wacom-enraged-customers-by-using-ai-art-but-says-its-not-to-blame/https://www.themarysue.com/artists-blast-wacom-ai-dragon-image/https://www.diyphotography.net/did-wacom-use-ai-generated-images-in-their-latest-ad/https://dataconomy.com/2024/01/08/wacom-ai-art/https://boingboing.net/2024/01/10/artists-upset-after-wacom-uses-ai-art-to-market-artist-gear.html
Related 🌐AI generates visuals for Wizards of the Coast marketing promotionNiantic uses AI artwork to promote Pokemon GoPage infoType: IssuePublished: February 2024
Reported impact
- Affected parties
- Not publicly disclosed
- Harm type
- Not publicly disclosed
- Scale
- Not publicly disclosed
- Financial impact
- Not publicly disclosed
- Regulatory action
- Not publicly disclosed
Classification
Relevant governance controls
Governance control mapping is not available for this record.
- No controls mapped
Not publicly disclosed
Control mapping is analytical. It does not state that any control would have prevented the incident.