DC Comics declares war on AI art: “Not now, not ever”

The comics giant DC has banned artificial intelligence (AI) art and storytelling, pledging to never use the technology amid industry debates and past scandals over synthetic content.

English poet Samuel Coleridge coined the term “suspending disbelief” to ward off dubious traits and appreciate art forms for what they are.

But it’s often tough to do so when the big players fritter away their resources on spurious effects made by AI.

Hello Antman, how’ve you been?

Luckily, benevolence has prevailed over at DC studios, with Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee assuring fans that the publishing house won’t be going synthetic anytime soon.

“Not now, not ever, as long as [SVP, general manager] Anne DePies and I are in charge,” Lee said at NYCC (New York Comic Con) in New York City on Wednesday.

Previous scandals

DC, along with parent company Warner Brothers, have been caught in the crosshairs with AI allegations in the past, most notably so with its artificially-generated cameo of the deceased Christopher Reeve for 2023’s The Flash.

Some opponents saw the move as ghoulish and disrespectful, likening it to the use of deepfakes, which hampered the comic outlet's reputation for a while.

When it comes to print, DC was embroiled in an AI scandal when Italian artist Mattina was alleged to have generated parts of the Superman logo before plagiarizing a Transformers cover for the Hasbro franchise.

The artist of this cover has 100% used ai like they did with their previous DC comics covers and it makes me want to puke pic.twitter.com/1IZi2p7DoQ
undefined Best Of Skybound Transformers (@TopOfSkyboundTF) September 12, 2024

The reaction on social media was one of disdain, with one X user brazenly saying, “It makes me want to puke.”

State of play with DC’s rivals

DC’s decision to firm up and hold the artistic fort has fans beaming. He announced the news to a commending reaction.

“This is fantastic,” opined Prime_the_Godfather on X.

Jim Lee let's it be known today that
DC Comics will not support /do AI-generated storytelling or art 👏🏽👏🏽.
This is fantastic pic.twitter.com/cI1TzMKk1u
undefined Prime The Godfather (@Prime_76) October 9, 2025

Marvel editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski also spoke out against AI for their entertainment press at NYCC.

“They’ve really gone to great lengths to detect AI… We never used it, we will not be using it, and we don’t condone it in the Marvel Comics division,” Cebulski said.

Have thoughts about this topic? Others do, too. Join them in the discussion.

And Japanese manga startup Orange raised just under $20 million last year to aid translation from Japanese to English for publishers like Shogakukan to transcribe features like The Promised Neverland and Chainsaw Man.

In New York, meanwhile, Jim Lee is resolute about the future, aligning the stars of authenticity to continue DC’s vision.