Anime fans are not the only ones who attend conventions; these activities are excellent opportunities to discover more about Japanese culture. And because of this, anime conventions are becoming more and more popular.

One of the largest anime conventions is held in Los Angeles. A statement was released earlier by Animé Los Angeles, which will take place at the Long Beach Convention Center in January 2023, stating that the convention will ban AI-generated art from herein. The statement released by the convention said the following.

“Al-generated artwork and its place in the convention space (exhibit halls, artist alleys, etc.) has recently become a focal point in many online discussions. Our staff has been watching the discussion and has determined that based on the current nature of its implementation and lack of regard towards artists, we cannot in good faith let this kind of product exist in our space.

We at Animé Los Angeles do not condone or accept any form of Al-generated art piece being used within our promotional materials nor sold in our Exhibit Hall or Artist Alley.

If any form of Al generated work being sold is determined to be as such by our staff, it will be considered a form of counterfeit/bootleg merchandise and must be removed.

In regards to our brand, we are very protective of the work that our contributing artists create and recognize the value they bring to our identity and convention space. Anything you see on our website, our promotional pieces, or our products is (and always will be) created by an artist that we have reached out to work directly with.

Anything Al-generated is unofficial and not approved by Animé Los Angeles staff.

For the purposes of this policy, Animé Los Angeles considers any work that is created with an Al-program that uses sources the artist does not own or hold rights to be in violation. If in the future, such a program is created that allows for only specific images the artist owns to be sourced from, it will be the artist’s responsibility to provide proof that the pieces were not created from stolen images.

We firmly stand by this position on the issue and will enforce it going forward while keeping an eye on the discussion from here on out.”

AI-generated art has been a topic of interest among the anime fandom for a while. A mutual hatred against such art has built over the years.

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For those unaware, AI-generated art is famously divisive in many communities, especially those centered around anime. And the reason for the hate is straightforward, AI-generated art can be created with almost minimal expertise, which makes it very simple to do and not very ‘art worthy.’

The worst controversy that revolves around AI art is the fact that anyone can steal art and pass it as their own. Future AI-generated art technology will advance; however, the ethics surrounding this subject are currently very complicated.

Many other conventions are lining up along the Anime Los Angeles to ban AI-generated artworks. AI-generated artwork still has a long way to go; until then, aesthetically pleasing hand-drawn art is the way to go.