sheetsadam1 — 2 months ago(January 23, 2026 04:08 AM)

A win for humans
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/san-diego-comic-con-bans-ai-art-2739389
San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC), the world’s biggest comic book convention, has banned A.I. art from its 2026 Comic-Con Art Show, which, unlike the main event, is free and open to the public.
The previous policy, in place since at least 2024, allowed A.I. art as long as it was marked not-for-sale (NFS) and clearly identified as A.I.-generated. “If one of the parameters in its creation was something similar to ‘Done in the style of,’ that information must be added to the description,” the guidelines continued.
Earlier this month, artists began speaking out against the policy on social media. Karla Ortiz, an artist who has worked on films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and is a plaintiff in an artist lawsuit against several A.I. companies, was among those to condemn the policy on BlueSky. She called it “a disgrace” to allot “valuable space to GenAi users to show slop right NEXT to actual artists who worked their asses off to be there.”
In response to the backlash, Comic-Con quietly updated its guidelines to take a hard line against A.I., as reported by Culture Crave and 404. The new guidelines state that “Material created by Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) either partially or wholly, is not allowed in the art show. If there are questions, the Art Show coordinator will be the sole judge of acceptability.”
As of press time, the organization did not respond to requests for comment.
“I am no fan of A.I. I’ve already seen it destroy the livelihoods of talented people,” animator Jodie Rae Charity, who sells work at industry events like New York City Comic Con (NYCC), wrote in a message on Instagram. “As an older, traditionally trained illustrator and animator, I take pride in the process of creating. It’s something I’ve studied and practiced for decades.”
A.I. tools are increasingly threatening artists’ job opportunities at movie and video game studios, among other industries. And even when artists are still creating the final product, some companies are now using A.I. for storyboarding and design—steps of the process that have traditionally afforded additional income for artists.
These generative A.I. models are trained on original artwork, leading some artists to argue that their copyright is being violated by the very tools that are taking away their livelihoods. A judge agreed in August 2024 to hear a class-action complaint from Ortiz and fellow artists Sarah Andersen and Kelly McKernan on exactly that issue. The lawsuit will be closely watched and stands to have major implications for the future of art.
“A.I. is not only detrimental to the environment; it also causes financial, ethical, and emotional damage to the art community and its artists, many of whom are small business owners selling their own art,” Sarah Myer, a comic book artist who has attended and shown at conventions for 23 years, wrote in an email. “I hope more conventions, big and small, will ban A.I. in their artist alleys and will actively ensure they’re hiring artists who do not use it to provide their signage, program and badge art, mascot art, etc.”
Both Charity and Myer also expressed concern that the increasing prevalence of A.I. has made artists vulnerable to accusations that they have used the technology in their art. At last year’s SDCC, rumors surfaced that the fair had kicked the Art by Sherilyn booth out for selling A.I. art. The fair later assured Bleeding Cool that the artist had closed her booth early due to health issues. Nevertheless, she reportedly faced online hate messages.
“One of the most devastating and long-lasting effects is social and emotional: it has sowed distrust against artists and between artists,” said Myer, who saves massive digital files with layers to show their work. “A.I. has become so pervasive that it’s causing stress for real human artists who work hard to create, to improve, and to conduct business… and now we need to worry about others distrusting our own creative integrity and work ethic? That’s the worst.”
A.I. bans are becoming increasingly common at industry events, and are in place at Anime NYC, Crunchyroll Expo, and Anime Los Angeles, according to Forbes. The prohibition at NYCC and other ReedPOP events extends beyond Artist Alley to the sale of any A.I.-generated products at the event, or risk a lifetime ban.
At Dragon Con in Atlanta, organizers called the police at last year’s event to evict an Artist Alley booth with A.I.-generated offerings that violated fair policy. The exhibitor, Miami artist Oriana Gerez, had applied with a portfolio of her own paintings, but showed up with a majority of A.I. work. And it allegedly wasn’t the first time she had pulled such a stunt—a post on X called out Gerez for trying to sell A.I. slop at the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo in 2024.
Artists who reached out to Gerez on Instagram after Dragon Con received aggressive responses such as “you guys are sore because you do