On Tuesday 25 March, OpenAI launched its new ChatGPT-4o update. Since then, users have been creating very convincing Studio Ghibli-style images with the new software, which raises questions about artificial intelligence and its respect towards copyrighted creative works.
OpenAI’s GPT-4o update is the most advanced so far. The AI-software has been adapted in order to provide more accurate text rendering, to follow more complex prompts, and to replicate a “vast variety of image styles”. Even though it should theoretically be able to provide images in all kinds of styles, one in particular has been gaining attention on the internet.
ChatGPT’s ability to render images in the style of the Japanese animation company Studio Ghibli has been stunning people from all over the world. Internet users have been replicating famous memes in the style but also scenes from their favourite movies, and images that have recently been in the news.
Donald Trump’s administration, too, has been using the viral method. The White House’s official X account posted a Studio Ghibli-style depiction of a crying woman from the Dominican Republic recently arrested by US immigration agents in a move that is being largely criticised.
https://t.co/PVdINmsHXs pic.twitter.com/Bw5YUCI2xL
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 27, 2025
Although people have been raising concerns over the ethical concerns at stake when artificial intelligence is replicating the works and styles of human artists, OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman has been inviting people to recreate their own Studio Ghibli images.
Any image + "Create a Studio Ghibli Version of this image" in GPT and you get basically perfect results. pic.twitter.com/Q23AqeznqN
— Jason Rink (@TheJasonRink) March 26, 2025
The case of Studio Ghibli is even more controversial given Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki’s opinion about AI-generated art which he shared in 2016. At the time, he commented on a video of a monster which had been generated through text prompts. Miyazaki himself is known for his hand-drawn approach.
“I am utterly disgusted. If you really want to make creepy stuff, you can go ahead and do it, but I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all. I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself. I feel like we are nearing the end of times. We humans are losing faith in ourselves,” he said at the time.
At the time of writing, it is unclear whether or not ChatGPT was trained for creating images using the Studio Ghibli images and if so, if the Japanese animation company has given OpenAI a license permission allowing them to do so.
