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After criticizing a startup called Artisan for misusing his work, artist KC Green — creator of the famous “That’s good” meme – said he had reached a deal with Artisan.
The dispute arose after startup seemed to use a version of Green’s art to promote its AI assistant Ava. In Artisan’s bus and subway ads, Green’s recognizable dog sat amid recognizable flames, but instead of saying “Everything’s OK,” he declared, “My pipeline is on fire,” while the ad urged people to “Hire Ava, the BDR AI.”
Earlier this month, Green posted on social media that his art had been “stolen like AI steals” and urged his followers to “vandalize” the ads if they saw them. He also told TechCrunch that he was frustrated that he had to “try his hand at the American justice system” instead of devoting that time to his comics.
Artisan, for his part, told us he has “a lot of respect for Green and his work.” Then, earlier this week, founder and CEO Jaspar Carmichael-Jack said the two sides had reached an agreement.
When TechCrunch contacted Green, he confirmed that they “reached an agreement fairly quickly,” with Artisan removing ads in New York and San Francisco that used his character, and Green removing his initial post.
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