With AI image copyright, "uncertain" is the default

Between 2024 and 2026, use of AI image generators exploded — and copyright disputes grew with it. "Can I use an AI-generated image commercially?" The answer is not simple, and much of it is jurisdiction-dependent: the analysis below draws on US Copyright Office guidance, the EU AI Act, Korean copyright law, and the official terms of Adobe, Midjourney, and OpenAI — and the rules differ by country. Here is a guide to the major tools' licenses and the recent flow of disputes across the US, EU, and Korea: what is safe, and what is risky.

Fact 1: license comparison by tool
Fact 1: license comparison by tool

Fact 1: license comparison by tool

ToolCommercial use on free tierCommercial use on paid tierOutput copyright
MidjourneyNo (CC BY-NC)Yes (Pro and above)User-owned (with limits)
DALL-E (OpenAI)YesYesUser-owned
Stable Diffusion (open)Yes—User-owned
Adobe FireflyYes (Creative Cloud)YesUser-owned + indemnification
Leonardo.aiPartiallyYesVaries by plan
Gemini ImagenYes (Google AI Studio)YesUser-owned
Only Adobe Firefly offers legal indemnification. Other tools say the output is "user-owned," but in a dispute the liability falls on the user. Only Adobe explicitly commits to bearing legal costs in a dispute.

Fact 2: the shift in US copyright registration
Fact 2: the shift in US copyright registration

Fact 2: the shift in US copyright registration

The US Copyright Office's position:

  • 2023-2024: AI-generated portions cannot be registered; only the parts a human has "meaningfully transformed" qualify

  • Late 2024: guidance clarified — a prompt alone does not amount to copyrightable human authorship

  • 2025-2026: moving to case-by-case analysis; registrability turns on the degree of human editing, compositing, and selection

In short, a 100% AI-generated image cannot be registered for copyright in the US. But where a human meaningfully edits or composites, that contribution can be registered. Korea and the EU are trending in a similar direction — though the specifics remain jurisdiction-dependent.

Fact 3: the shadow of the training-data disputes

Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, and others trained on internet images, allegedly including large amounts of copyrighted material. The consequences:

  • Getty Images v. Stability AI (UK) — proceedings ongoing into 2026
  • New York Times v. OpenAI and related suits — some in progress
  • A future risk that output from tools trained on copyrighted images could be treated as a derivative work

This risk is exactly why Adobe Firefly emphasizes training only on licensed data — it lowers dispute exposure.

Fact 4: five safe patterns (as practiced in the Korean market — the logic travels, but check your own jurisdiction)

Five patterns for using AI images commercially with lower risk:

Pattern 1: use only Adobe Firefly

The strongest legal backing. In a dispute, Adobe carries the responsibility. The cost is a Creative Cloud commitment ($20+/month).

Pattern 2: AI generation + 50%+ human editing

Take an AI-generated image and edit it by 50% or more — color, composition, compositing. This raises the odds that a human "creative contribution" is recognized.

Pattern 3: your own photo + AI transformation

Transform a photo you took yourself. You own the original's copyright; the copyright status of the AI-transformed portion is murky, but the dispute risk is low.

Pattern 4: clearly licensed tools with dispute indemnification

Beyond Adobe Firefly, some enterprise tools (Getty AI, Shutterstock AI) offer dispute indemnification. Costly, but safe.

Pattern 5: disclosed provenance + clear labeling

Label AI-generated images clearly as "AI-generated." Labeling mandates are advancing in some areas under advertising and consumer-protection law. A label lowers dispute risk.

Fact 5: five risk cases

Usage patterns with high dispute potential:

  1. Generating celebrity faces — near-certain infringement of publicity rights, in the US and Korea alike
  2. Mimicking a specific artist's style — images made with "in the style of [artist]" prompts; risky while the artist is living
  3. Variations on famous characters — Disney, Japanese anime characters, and the like: plain copyright infringement
  4. Logos and brand imagery — AI images resembling a company logo risk trademark infringement
  5. Regulated advertising (pharmaceuticals, finance) — regulated sectors impose separate limits on AI imagery

Recommendation: a safety guide for solo creators

General content (blog, social)

  • Adobe Firefly, or your own photo + AI transformation
  • Disclose the source and tool
  • Never generate celebrities or famous characters

Commercial advertising

  • Check the ad platform's guidelines in advance
  • Only Adobe Firefly or other clearly licensed tools
  • Legal review recommended if budget allows

Paid content (books, courses, SaaS)

  • Main imagery from clearly licensed tools or a human designer
  • Supporting imagery via Adobe Firefly and the like
  • Be clear about who bears liability in a dispute (you do)

Checklist: five questions before using an AI image

  • [ ] Have you read this tool's commercial-use license?
  • [ ] Does the image avoid celebrities, famous characters, and known logos?
  • [ ] Is it clear who bears liability in a dispute (the tool vendor? you)?
  • [ ] Is this a domain that requires an AI-generated label (advertising, media)?
  • [ ] Is the image's value proportionate to its dispute risk?

Conclusion

With AI image copyright, "uncertain" is the default state — and the rules are jurisdiction-dependent. The safest patterns are Adobe Firefly, or 50%+ human editing. The riskiest are celebrities, famous characters, and named-artist style mimicry. For a typical solo creator, Adobe Firefly plus source disclosure plus labeling is safe enough; commercial advertising and paid content warrant extra review.

One last line: The real price of an AI image is not the license fee but whether it is written down who bears liability in a dispute. A free tool missing that one line is itself the trap.

External references

Recommended primary sources on AI image copyright, tool licenses, and regulation:

  • US Copyright Office, Compendium of US Copyright Office Practices + AI guidance (2023-) — primary source on US registration.
  • EU AI Act (Regulation 2024/1689) — the European AI regulation text.
  • The Korean Copyright Act + the Korea Copyright Commission's AI copyright guidelines.
  • Adobe Firefly official license and indemnification pages.
  • Midjourney Terms of Service.
  • OpenAI DALL-E / image-generation official terms.
  • Stability AI Stable Diffusion license + Getty Images v. Stability AI.
  • Google Gemini Imagen official terms.
  • Primary filings in New York Times v. OpenAI, Andersen v. Stability AI, and related cases.
  • Korea Fair Trade Commission guidelines on AI labeling in advertising.