In a strategic move signifying its commitment to artificial intelligence (AI)-powered solutions, Shutterstock recently announced the widening and deepening of its relationship with OpenAI. The company intends to supply the AI startup with an array of training datasets over an extended timespan of six years.
A part of their expanded licensing agreement, OpenAI will get access to an extensive array of data, including images, videos, music, and associated metadata. In return, Shutterstock will gain priority access to OpenAI's state-of-the-art technology. It will also acquire new editing competencies to allow customers to reengineer images from Shutterstock's vast catalogue.
In an interesting development, Shutterstock mentioned its plans to collaborate with OpenAI to integrate generative AI capabilities for mobile users via Giphy that the company recently took over from Meta.
Shutterstock CEO, Paul Hennessy, reiterated the company's focus on AI innovation, marking the continued partnership with OpenAI as a step forward in their endeavor.
Nevertheless, the relationship between stock content libraries such as Shutterstock and generative AI startups is known to be somewhat rocky. Given the potential of generative AI, especially in the realm of art, to design customizable images rapidly, it presents a credible threat to the traditional stock galleries.
Artist communities and contributors to stock image collections have expressed reservations about generative AI startups, feeling that their processes exploit the artist's work without appropriate acknowledgement or remuneration.
Additionally, AI art tools have faced legal difficulties. Earlier this year, the creators of AI art tool Stable Diffusion from Stability AI were sued by Getty Images for allegedly plagiarizing their content. Another lawsuit involves a group of artists accusing Stability AI together with an AI art creation platform, Midjourney, of violating copyright law by training on their internet-based work without permission.
Whereas some experts propose that using public, even copyrighted images, falls within the bounds of 'fair use' within the US laws, a definite decision is far from being reached.
On the other hand, Shutterstock's approach seems to diverge from competitors like Getty Images by openly adopting generative AI. Interestingly, Shutterstock first initiated collaborations with OpenAI in 2021 to launch an image creator powered by OpenAI's DALL-E 2, which became operational only around the end of 2022. They also have established licensing deals with Nvidia, Meta, LG among others for creating generative AI tools and models across 3D models, images and text.
Still, to address the concerns of artists in its platform, Shutterstock set up a 'contributor fund', which compensates artists for their contributions used in training the company's generative AI. It also includes ongoing royalties relevant to licensing for newly generative assets.
An essential perspective to consider while examining Shutterstock's decision is the wide array of benefits generative AI can bring to no-code platforms. Tools like no-code platforms, including AppMaster, can tremendously benefit from enhanced image manipulation capabilities and improved creative processes that generative AI provides.
AppMaster, for instance, with its extensive range of built-in AI-related features, can leverage more sophisticated AI functionalities to diversify the customization options for its users. This would not only enhance its value proposition but also contribute to larger tech industry trends where AI and no-code platforms become progressively intertwined.
