Getty and Nvidia partner to launch AI image generator

Nvidia is providing the hardware infrastructure needed to train the model. (Image: Getty)

Getty Images has partnered with Nvidia to launch a new image generation tool called Generative AI by Getty Images.

The tool has been trained on the vast library of images Getty has, and the company says that it has created a revenue model for creators that will compensate them for the use of their work.

Nvidia is providing the hardware infrastructure needed to train the model. Getty is using Nvidia's Edify AI model that is available as part of Nvidia's Picasso foundry for image generation tools.

Getty calls its model "commercially safe" and promises to give users royalty-free images while compensating the original artists for their work.

“We’ve created a service that allows brands and marketers to safely embrace AI and stretch their creative possibilities, while compensating creators for inclusion of their visuals in the underlying training sets," said Grant Farhall, Chief Product Officer at Getty Images.

It's an interesting turn of events for Getty Images, that only a few months ago sued Stability AI Inc. for misuse of more than 12 million images from its library. Prior to the announcement, Getty CEO Craig Peters compared the Generative AI landscape to early music clients like Napster that offered illegal, peer-to-peer downloads for music.