DC Comics will not support AI-generated storytelling or artwork, Jim Lee confirms

In these perturbing times, as AI casts its shadow over most of the jobs, especially in the fields of writing and graphics, a hero rises to protect creativity rather than the corporates that don’t even bother to flinch a muscle.

This is no script for any comic/movie, but just an opening for a brilliant news shared from DC Comics office. DC Comics’ President, Publisher, and Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee, when speaking at the pre-NYCC Retailers’ Summit, stated that DC has taken on a firm stance against using AI to create their comics.

Here’s what Jim Lee had to say:

DC Comics will not support AI-generated storytelling or artwork. Not now, not ever as long as Anne DePies and I are in charge. Because what we do and why we do it is rooted in our humanity. It’s that fragile, beautiful connection between imagination and emotion that fuels our media, the stuff that makes our universe come alive. It’s the imperfect mind, the creative risk, the hand-drawn gesture that no algorithm can replicate. And when I draw, I make mistakes, a lot of them. But that’s the point. The smudge, the rough line, the hesitation. That’s me in the work. That’s my journey. That’s what makes it come alive. It’s the product of true effort, of inspiration, and perspiration. Fans know this. They sense this. They can feel when something was made with care, when it cost the artist time, energy, heart, and effort. People have an instinctive reaction to what feels authentic. We recoil from what feels fake. That’s why human creativity matters. AI doesn’t dream. It doesn’t feel. It doesn’t make art. It aggregates it. Our job as creators, as storytellers, and as publishers is to make people feel something real. That’s why we create, and that’s why we’re still here.

Many of us aren’t against the use of AI, but most of the corporates are just misusing it and making a mess of others’ lives. We can hope, other giants like Marvel, Image Comics, Dark Horse, Viz, Boom, and others too, take the same stance.

Oh boy, am glad someone from the big league has spoken!