Disney, Universal Studios and Warner Bros Discovery filed a joint copyright infringement lawsuit against Chinese artificial intelligence company Minimax on September 16, 2025. Entertainment Giants accuses the Shanghai-based company of building businesses around “destiny and brave” copyright violations through Hailuo AI Services.
According to a complaint filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California, Minimax operates as an image and video generation service that says, “on a large scale, copyrighted work of Pirate Plaintiffs.” The lawsuit alleges that Minimax is selling the service as “Hollywood Studios in your pocket.” This is “bold” given that the business is said to be dependent on intellectual property stolen from Hollywood Studios.
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The technical capabilities documented in the 119-page complaint reveal how subscribers can generate high-quality, downloadable content featuring iconic characters using simple text prompts. According to the filing, when a user requests an image of Darth Vader performing a specific action, Hailuo AI generates a detailed output featuring a Disney copyrighted character with Minimax branding. Similar results occur for requests involving Dozens of other protected characters across the properties of Wonder Woman, Minion, Spider-Man, and three studios.
Minimax operates multiple subscription tiers, ranging from a free premium plan of $199.99 per month. Free Tier offers 500 credits that expire within three days, with each image generation taking 1 credit and 25 credits for 6-second video creation. This model encourages users to upgrade to paid subscriptions that offer additional credits, watermark removal capabilities, and faster processing speeds.
The lawsuit details Minimax’s promotional strategy, including using copyrighted characters in official ads on Instagram, Tiktok, YouTube and WeChat. One of the promotional videos shows Spider-Man and Supergirl “kissing in the park,” instructing users to “enter what you want” into the Heiloo interface. The studio claims that these marketing materials directly encourage copyright infringement, while also falsely implying studio approval.
Minimax’s “Explore” page further amplifies alleged infringement by publishing videos generated by other subscribers that feature copyrighted characters. The complaint argues that the gallery demonstrates both the company’s knowledge of certain infringements and its strategy to attract subscribers through the reproduction of fraudulent characters.
The training methods behind Hailuo AI represent a central element of the studio’s allegations. According to the complaint, Minimax has collected copyrighted content through automated tools such as “bots, scrapers, stream rippers, video downloaders, web crawlers.” This content was processed and reformatted before being used to train AI systems, creating what the lawsuit calls “number of fraudulent copies” of the work.
Within Hailoo AI, it already exists in Hailoo AI to block content that includes violence and nude, demonstrating the company’s ability to implement copyright protection measures. However, Studios argues that Minimax has purposely chosen not to apply similar protections to intellectual property despite receiving a suspension and assumption request detailing certain infringement concerns.
The ceasefire and assumption letter sent on August 27, 2025 specifically identified over 30 copyrighted characters reproduced by Hailoo AI, including characters from Star Wars, Marvel, DC Comics, Pixar, Rooney Tunes and major animated franchises. According to the complaint, Minimax was virtually unable to respond and continued to generate infringing content even after receiving official notifications.
The financial interests in this case reflect both the rapid growth of Minimax and the economic concerns of the entertainment industry. The Chinese company reportedly achieved a $4 billion valuation by January 2025 and raised $850 million from venture capital. Meanwhile, the studio highlights a collective contribution of over $260 billion to millions of jobs in the American economy and film industry.
The lawsuit seeks maximum statutory damages of $150,000 for each infringed job, taking into account the alleged intentional nature of the violation. Additional relief includes further infringement, recovery of profits, and injunction measures to suspend attorneys’ fees under the Copyright Act provisions. The studio specifically requires that you request Minimax to implement appropriate copyright protection measures before providing Hailuo AI services.
The legal action follows a previous copyright war with the same studio launched against AI company Midjourney. Disney and Universal first sued the Mid Journey in June 2025, and Warner Bros Discovery joined the lawsuit in September. These cases represent part of a broader wave of copyright enforcement behaviour as traditional media companies face AI training and misuse of content in generations.
The entertainment industry strategy appears to include both litigation and selective partnerships with AI companies. While pursuing proactive enforcement of unauthorized use, some studios are considering licensing arrangements with technology companies that respect intellectual property rights and implement appropriate safeguards.
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For the marketing community, this case highlights the key implications for AI-powered content creation and brand protection strategies. The advent of AI-generated content creates new channels of brand exposure, simultaneously introducing trademarks and copyright risks that require careful monitoring and enforcement.
This case also illustrates how AI platforms shape advertising environments through both legitimate applications and potential breach scenarios. Marketing professionals need to navigate this complex environment where AI tools provide creative efficiency, but they can also pose intellectual property risks to brand owners.
Industry analysts point out that successful resolution of these well-known copyright cases can establish key precedents for AI training practices and commercial use of generated content. This result could affect the way technology companies implement licensing negotiation approaches and implement protection measures for copyrighted materials.
The Minimax Case advances broader questions regarding artificial intelligence development in a global market where various legal frameworks and enforcement mechanisms apply. Chinese companies that run AI services that serve international users face surveillance from intellectual property owners who are willing to pursue cross-border litigation.
As AI-generated content becomes more refined and accessible, the entertainment industry’s enforcement strategy demonstrates decades of resolve to protect creative investment and character development. The studio claims that allowing fraudulent use undermines incentives for future creative work and threatens the established licensing market.
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Timeline
September 16, 2025: Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros Discovery Files Joint Litigation Against Minimax in California Central District Court 27, 2025: Studio sends specific copyright infringement details to a letter of suspension and measurement. June 2025 against Midjourney for similar claims: Initial copyright lawsuit against Disney and Universal File AI company Midjourney2021: Established in Shanghai with support from Chinese companies and investors
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summary
WHO: Disney Enterprises, Universal Studios and Warner Bros Discovery have filed lawsuits against Chinese AI company Minimax, its subsidiary Shanghai Xiyu Jizhi Technology Co. Ltd. and Singapore’s affiliate Nanonoble Pte. Ltd.
Content: A comprehensive copyright infringement lawsuit that built the Hailuo AI service by copying protected characters and content without permission sold the service using the same copyrighted properties, while generating unlimited copies for subscribers.
When: The lawsuit was filed on September 16, 2025, and August 27, 2025, following a suspension and assumption letter that Minimax allegedly ignored.
Location: Filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California, it targets a Shanghai-based company that serves global users through an English-language interface and US payment system.
Reason: Studios argues that Minimax’s misuse threatens the economic foundation and creative incentives of the American entertainment industry and avoids the established licensing market that funds future content development.
