Getty Images sues image-generating AI 'Stable Diffusion' for copyright infringement; only trademark infringement found; both sides declare victory
The High Court in London has ruled in a lawsuit brought against Getty Images, a stock photo service that distributes stock photos for a fee, alleging that its image-generating AI, Stable Diffusion, infringes intellectual property rights. While the court dismissed the claim of copyright infringement by the AI model, stating that it was not a copyright-infringing copy, it upheld the claim of trademark infringement regarding the watermark. Both Getty Images and Stable AI, the company that operates Stable Diffusion, have essentially declared victory.
Stability AI largely wins UK court battle against Getty Images over copyright and trademark | AP News
AI firm wins high court ruling after photo agency's copyright claim | Intellectual property | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2025/nov/04/stabilty-ai-high-court-getty-images-copyright
Getty Images issues statement on ruling in Stability AI UK litigation - Getty Images
https://newsroom.gettyimages.com/en/getty-images/getty-images-issues-statement-on-ruling-in-stability-ai-uk-litigation
The lawsuit was filed in January 2023, alleging that Stability AI infringed intellectual property rights in content owned or represented by Getty Images. Getty Images alleged that Stability AI had stolen 12 million images without permission to train its 'Stable Diffusion' algorithm.
Stability AI, the developer of the image generation AI 'Stable Diffusion,' is being sued by Getty Images, the stock photo site that once brought Google to a settlement - GIGAZINE
Judge Joanna Smith, who presided over the case, dismissed the copyright infringement claim, stating that 'AI models like Stable Diffusion, which do not (and have never done) store or reproduce copyrighted works, do not constitute 'infringing copies.'' However, she withheld judgment on the unfair competition claim and accepted Getty Images's claim that the inclusion of a watermark constituted trademark infringement.
'We are pleased that the court has ruled on the remaining claims in this case (excluding trademark infringement),' said Christian Dowell, Stability AI's legal director. Furthermore, because Getty Images voluntarily dismissed many of its copyright infringement claims due to a lack of evidence that the training took place in the UK, Dowell added, 'The final ruling resolves the core copyright concerns. We appreciate the time and effort the court has spent resolving the key issues in this case.'
Meanwhile, Getty Images declared victory, saying, 'The judgment finds that Stable Diffusion's inclusion of the Getty Images trademark in its products constitutes trademark infringement. Importantly, the court rejected Stability AI's attempt to hold users liable for trademark infringement, recognizing that the responsibility lies with the model provider, who controls the images used for training. This is an important victory for intellectual property owners.'
'An important finding was that Getty Images' copyrighted works were used to train Stable Diffusion, regardless of where the training or development took place. This establishes a strong precedent that intangible items, such as AI models, can be subject to copyright infringement claims just like tangible items, and we will use the findings of this case in our US litigation.'
As Getty Images noted, a lawsuit against Stability AI is also underway in the US, and it will be interesting to see what impact the UK ruling will have.
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