The growing influence of artificial intelligence on digital art creation has reached a new milestone with the announcement of a partnership between California-based startup Dashtoon and the Korea Webtoon Industry Association (KWIA). This deal, which seeks to license and host top-tier webtoons on Dashtoon’s platform, has sparked a debate around the use of AI-generated images in the webtoon industry.
Dashtoon, a platform recognized by Google Play as the best app of 2023 in the “Comics and Manga” category, has decided to expand into the Western market by collaborating with Korean artists through its “Dashtoon Studio” tool. This tool allows for the creation of AI-generated images, which, according to the parties involved, will speed up the production of webtoons. However, the use of this technology has raised ethical and legal concerns.
In a recent statement, A Dashtoon representative confirmed that the images used in their generative model come from open source platforms such as Stable Diffusionwhich is currently facing litigation related to violations of moral and economic rights. This has raised concerns among artists, who see this practice as an act of misappropriation of their work.
The KWIA association, which includes prominent Korean studios such as D&C Media and Kakao Entertainment, has expressed interest in this collaboration, although it is not yet known which of its titles will be transferred to the Dashtoon platform. This move follows a strategic partnership between Google Korea and KWIA, signed in September 2023, which seeks to expand the webtoon industry globally.
Despite the benefits that AI can bring in reducing the workload for creators, many artists and collectivessuch as the NAFCA Animators Association, have expressed concern about the lack of adequate measures to protect the moral rights of creators. While some artists are willing to accept the reality of generative AI, most remain opposed, arguing that it devalues art, belittles creative endeavour and endangers livelihoods.
This development is part of a broader trend in which manga and webtoon platforms are adopting AI tools to support artists in creating high-quality content. However, the implementation of this technology remains a divisive issue within the global art community.
Fountain: ComicBook Resources
