Creator( )Mohammad Shayan AhmadwithAP
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Chinese tech company ByteDance has announced restrictions on its controversial AI-powered video creation tool following allegations of copyright infringement from major media companies.
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Seedance 2.0, the latest model of AI video generator released on February 12th (available only in China), has gone viral, allowing users to create realistic images and videos of famous actors and cartoon characters with short text prompts.
One of the photos showed Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise fighting. This AI has been praised by many online because its output is highly realistic compared to existing models such as DeepSeek.
However, several Hollywood companies have threatened legal action against ByteDance.
According to media reports, Disney sent a cease-and-desist letter to Seadance on February 13, accusing the company of training with a “pirated library” containing famous Disney characters such as Star Wars and Marvel.
The letter alleged that SeaDance was using and distributing creative works as “public domain clip art,” infringing Disney’s copyright and intellectual property, sources told Reuters.
Variety reported that Paramount Skydance also sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance due to copyright infringement.
“We hear your concerns about SeaDance 2.0,” ByteDance said in a statement on Sunday.
“We are taking steps to strengthen our current safeguards to prevent unauthorized use of our intellectual property and likeness by our users,” it added.
The company has not disclosed what measures it is taking.
ByteDance previously said it had “suspended the ability for users to upload images of real people,” the BBC reported.
SAG-AFTRA, the American labor union that protects the rights of on-screen actors and artists, expressed concern about the “misappropriation of the voices and likenesses of its members.” In a statement, they called for “responsible AI development,” which will not exist in the case of ByteDance.
In 2025, Disney also sent a cease and desist letter to Character.ai for using its characters without permission. In response to the letter, the chatbot service removed all characters that infringed on Disney’s intellectual property.
Disney and MBC Universal also sued online image generation company Midlenyi in 2025 for the same copyright infringement reasons. Although the lawsuit is still ongoing, it shows that Disney and other creative companies are actively working to protect their intellectual property.
But these companies also have contracts with AI businesses. Disney has signed a $1 billion deal with OpenAI, allowing its video generator Sora AI to creatively use the likenesses of characters such as Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and Luke Skywalker under a three-year license agreement.
