Perplexity AI has announced a new multi-year deal with Getty Images. This partnership means Perplexity users will now get access to Getty’s huge collection of images. Perplexity will use Getty’s special connection tools, called an API, to bring in stock and editorial photos into its AI search features. A very important part of this agreement is making sure images are properly credited.
Getty stated in a press release that Perplexity will improve how it displays images. This includes displaying image credits with links back to the source. The goal is to teach users how to use licensed pictures legally. As AI tools that create content become more common, tricky issues about copyright and who gets credit have led to many lawsuits. Perplexity itself has faced several of these.
For example, in August, two Japanese media companies, Nikkei and Asahi Shimbun, sued Perplexity. They claimed the AI company illegally copied and stored their article content from their servers, then gave out incorrect information while crediting them. Perplexity was also one of four companies Reddit sued earlier this month, accusing them of scraping data from Reddit without proper permission. Even a dictionary company has sued Perplexity.
Getty itself has dealt with AI challenges many times before this new deal. In 2022, the company banned AI-generated art from its platform due to unclear copyright laws. Later, Getty sued the AI art tool Stable Diffusion, saying it copied and used millions of protected images from its collection.
Nick Unsworth, Vice President of Strategic Development at Getty Images, spoke about the Perplexity agreement. He said that “partnerships such as this support AI platforms to increase the quality and accuracy of information delivered to consumers, ultimately building a more engaging and reliable experience.” This deal suggests a path forward for AI companies to use copyrighted material responsibly.
