OpenAI has temporarily placed limits on how many images ChatGPT can generate. According to CEO Sam Altman, the huge demand has put pressure on the company’s computing resources, specifically its GPUs.
The limits come days after OpenAI launched a new image-generation tool using the GPT-4o model. This tool creates more realistic images and improves text rendering.
Altman called it a “high-water mark” for creativity. However, the tool has mainly been used to make memes inspired by Studio Ghibli, the legendary Japanese animation studio behind films like Spirited Away, The Boy and the Heron, and My Neighbor Totoro. Social media has been flooded with Ghibli-style images of people, animals, and even historical events.
While fun, these images have also sparked copyright concerns. Artists are worried that AI tools use copyrighted works without permission. OpenAI is already facing lawsuits over this issue. To address these concerns, the company introduced a feature that blocks users from generating images in the style of living artists.
Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, who is still alive, has spoken out against AI in the past, calling it an “insult to life itself.” OpenAI’s free version of ChatGPT also enforces strict rules, refusing to create Ghibli-style images.
