ChatGPT puts real cartoonists’ signatures on generated work, putting attribution at risk
Generated cartoons are carrying the authenticity marks of working artists who neither made nor approved them.
Nieman Lab documented more than 15 New Yorker cartoonists whose signatures appeared without permission or payment on images generated by ChatGPT, including outputs requested only as “New Yorker-style” cartoons. OpenAI called the behavior unintended and added a guardrail warning after being notified, but the reporter still obtained some signed outputs; The New Yorker said its licensing agreement did not cover cartoon training rights. When an AI product can attach a creator’s brand to substitute work, publishers and freelancers face a combined authenticity, licensing and paid-labor problem.