Copyright infringement legal action initiated by leading film studios against Chinese AI company
In a significant move, Disney Enterprises, Universal Studios, and Warner Bros Discovery have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Chinese AI company MiniMax. The lawsuit, filed on September 16, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, targets a Shanghai-based company that serves global users through English-language interfaces and U.S. payment systems.
At the heart of the lawsuit is MiniMax's Hailuo AI service, an image and video generating service that allows users to create high-quality, downloadable content featuring iconic characters through simple text prompts. The studios allege that MiniMax's Hailuo AI service pirates and plunders copyrighted works on a massive scale, publicly displaying videos generated by other subscribers that feature copyrighted characters.
The lawsuit seeks maximum statutory damages of $150,000 per infringed work, injunctive measures to stop further infringement, profit recovery, and attorney fees under copyright law provisions. The studios argue that allowing unauthorized use would undermine incentives for future creative work and threaten established licensing markets.
The case against MiniMax follows a cease-and-desist letter sent on August 27, 2025, which the company allegedly ignored. The financial stakes in the case reflect both MiniMax's rapid growth and the entertainment industry's economic concerns. MiniMax reportedly achieved a $4 billion valuation and raised $850 million in venture capital by January 2025.
Warner Bros Discovery joined the existing lawsuit against Midjourney for similar allegations in September 2025. Chinese companies operating AI services that serve international users face increasing scrutiny from intellectual property owners willing to pursue cross-border litigation.
The training methodology behind Hailuo AI involves collecting copyrighted content through automated tools and using it to train the AI system, creating innumerable unauthorized copies of protected works. The entertainment industry's enforcement strategy signals its determination to protect decades of creative investment and character development.
The lawsuit details MiniMax's promotional strategy, which allegedly includes using copyrighted characters in official advertisements across various platforms. The outcome of the high-profile copyright cases could establish important precedents for AI training practices and commercial use of generated content.
The entertainment industry's strategy involves both litigation and selective partnerships with AI companies that respect intellectual property rights and implement appropriate safeguards. MiniMax was founded as one of the startups in the Chinese AI large model sector and is supported by major internet companies and top investment funds like Tencent, Alibaba, Meituan, and Sequoia Capital China.
AI platforms are reshaping advertising landscapes, offering creative efficiencies but posing intellectual property risks for brand owners. The case against MiniMax advances broader questions about AI development in global markets with different legal frameworks and enforcement mechanisms. The industry's response to these challenges will shape the future of AI-generated content and its impact on intellectual property rights.
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