Korean comic creators called for strict rules requiring artists’ consent before their work is used to train artificial intelligence (AI) models, delivering their demand Friday during an international conference at UNESCO headquarters in Paris.
The association’s president, Kwon Hyuk-joo, who is a webtoon artist and a professor at Kongju National University, spoke Tuesday at a conference titled “Promoting Human Creativity and the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in the Digital Environment.”
Webtoons are digital comics designed to be read by scrolling on smartphones. They are a major Korean cultural export, and many have been adapted into TV dramas and films.
Kwon appeared on a panel about developing AI systems that respect rights and cultural diversity. Alexandra Bensamoun, a professor at Paris-Saclay University, chaired the session, which also included representatives of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and Microsoft.
Kwon cited a survey the association conducted. Of the 164 creators who responded, about 90 percent said they did not know how to stop their work from being used for AI training. Meanwhile, 81.1 percent said they would take part in an opt-in system, under which their work could be used only with their prior consent.
He said that allowing a webtoon to be published, allowing it to be used to train an AI model and allowing its characters to be used in AI services such as chatbots are separate rights. Creators should be able to decide on each one, he said. He also called for mandatory labeling of AI-generated content and transparency about training data.
At the conference, Jean-Michel Jarre, the electronic music composer and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, said humans must remain the ones who decide the purpose and direction of creative work. Ángeles González-Sinde, vice president of the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers, called for meaningful consent rights, transparency about training data and fair pay for creators.
UNESCO said the discussions will feed into its digital policy work under the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, according to the association.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.
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