WednesdAI // Week 41

A lot of news about AI filmmaking advancements and new policies around AI technology so let’s dive right in.

 
Welcome to WednesdAI – Pixel Dreams’ weekly update with top stories from the rapidly evolving world of Artificial Intelligence.

This Week’s News

Top Story

🎬 The New Sora is a Social Network, not a video creator.

OpenAI’s new video-generation app Sora hit #1 on the U.S. App Store within days of launch, becoming the latest viral success in AI tools. The app lets users turn text into realistic short videos, and social media is quickly filled with creative—and sometimes bizarre—clips made with it. The surge shows how quickly consumers are embracing AI video, but it’s already raising red flags over how this content is made and shared.

Users have been creating videos with copyrighted or well-known fictional characters like Spider-Man and Elsa, which could violate intellectual property laws. Fans see it as fun and harmless, but studios are not laughing. The lack of clear rules about what’s fair use in AI-generated video means OpenAI could face the same kind of copyright battles that hit other tech platforms.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the company will add “granular, opt-in copyright controls” so rights holders can choose how their content is used. It’s a step toward addressing concerns, but how these controls will actually work—or if they’ll be enough to prevent legal backlash—remains to be seen.

📰 Check out from TechCrunch, The Verge, and TechCrunch.

Culture & the Creator Economy

🎤 Taylor Swift Fans Accuse Singer of Using AI in Scavenger Hunt Videos

Taylor Swift’s fans are accusing her of using AI-generated videos in a recent Google-led scavenger hunt promoting her upcoming album. The campaign featured short clips that some viewers claim looked “too perfect” or “digitally altered,” sparking debate over whether Swift—or Google—used generative AI to boost engagement. Neither party has confirmed or denied the claim, leaving fans split between excitement over the tech and disappointment over possible deception. The controversy highlights how even pop culture’s most trusted icons can get tangled in AI’s credibility problem.

@jonathanmillermusic Replying to @☆ANT☆ Here are my thoughts. #taylorswift #TSTheLifeofaShowgirl #swifttok #ts12 #swiftie @Taylor Swift @Taylor Nation ♬ original sound – jonathanmillermusic

📰 Get the updates from Yahoo and TechCrunch.

🧍‍♂️ MrBeast Warns That AI Could Threaten Creator Livelihoods

YouTuber MrBeast warned that AI could threaten creators’ livelihoods, calling it a “scary time” for the online content industry. Speaking about the rise of hyper-realistic AI videos, he said tools that can clone creators’ faces and voices might soon replace real people altogether. His comments come as AI-generated influencer content floods platforms like TikTok and YouTube, blurring the line between human and synthetic creators. While some see opportunity in automation, others fear an industry where algorithms make the stars.

📰 Dive into more insights from TechCrunch and Mr. Beast X post.

Tools & Transformation

💬 ChatGPT Gets Built-In Apps for a More Interactive Experience

OpenAI has introduced a new feature in ChatGPT called “Apps,” allowing users to integrate powerful tools like Canva, Zapier, and others directly into their chat experience. These apps enable tasks such as designing visuals, automating workflows, and accessing third-party services—all within ChatGPT. Users can browse and install apps from the ChatGPT app store, and developers can build custom apps using OpenAI’s new schema. This update enhances ChatGPT’s utility for both personal and professional use, streamlining productivity and creativity. Apps are available to ChatGPT Plus users and will expand over time.

📰 Read the article form OpenAI and TechCrunch.

💼 Deloitte Goes All-In on AI Despite Refund Controversy

Deloitte is doubling down on artificial intelligence, even after being forced to issue a multimillion-dollar refund to a client for AI-generated work that didn’t meet contract standards. The firm announced a major expansion of its AI initiatives, including new partnerships with OpenAI and Anthropic, plus in-house training to make consultants “AI-fluent.” The refund incident stemmed from auditors allegedly relying too heavily on generative tools for analysis—an embarrassing but not disqualifying misstep. Despite the setback, Deloitte is pitching itself as an AI-first consultancy to stay competitive with rivals like PwC and Accenture. The message to the market: even when AI fumbles, the big money still bets on it.

📰 Read more about this from TechCrunch.

Ethics & Accountability

🧠 Ex-OpenAI Researcher Explains ChatGPT’s “Delusional Spirals”

A former OpenAI researcher published a deep dive into one of ChatGPT’s “delusional spirals,” where the AI confidently generated false statements and doubled down when corrected. The analysis breaks down how feedback loops in large language models can reinforce errors, especially when the model tries too hard to sound certain. The researcher argues this behavior isn’t just a glitch but a structural flaw in how these systems learn from human approval. OpenAI reportedly has internal tools to monitor such spirals but hasn’t fully solved them. For businesses betting on AI reliability, the takeaway is clear: confidence in a chatbot doesn’t equal competence.

📰 Find out from TechCrunch.

🛡️Character.AI Pulls Disney Bots After Legal Demand

Character.AI has pulled all Disney-themed chatbots from its platform after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from the entertainment giant. The company had hosted user-created bots mimicking Disney characters like Elsa and Darth Vader, which Disney claimed violated its intellectual property. Character.AI complied quickly, likely to avoid a costly legal fight, and reminded users not to create bots based on copyrighted material. The move highlights growing tension between generative AI platforms and legacy media companies guarding their IP. For AI startups, it’s another reminder that “fan engagement” can turn into a legal nightmare when your fans imitate billion-dollar brands.

📰 Full story from TechCrunch.

The section header images in this article were generated using the following prompts:

Sam Altman sits at a futuristic, glowing keyboard, typing the foundational code for a video prompt. Floating in the air above the keyboard, Bob Ross uses a digital paintbrush to paint colorful, descriptive words like almighty mountains and lazy little clouds. Beside them, Michael Jackson strikes an iconic, energetic pose, and the AI captures his motion, translating it into dynamic words like sudden explosion of light and rhythmic pulse that add themselves to the prompt text. Conceptual, symbolic, high-tech, teamwork.

Taylor Swift’s face illuminated by a smartphone, excitedly follows an online scavenger hunt. On the phone screen, the image of the pop star glitches for a split second, revealing an underlying wireframe and a cold, robotic expression. The fan’s excitement morphs into confusion and slight fear. Moody, atmospheric, shallow depth of field, hyperrealistic, close-up on the fan’s face and the phone.

A conceptual art piece showing a digital pipeline. On the left, a pristine ChatGPT interface inputs clean data. The data flows through glowing tubes labeled “Canva” for visualization and “Zapier” for automation. The pipeline is clean and efficient. But on the right, the output of the pipe is not a report, but a messy, chaotic splash of corrupted pixels and shredded digital money, staining a document with a corporate letterhead. Symbolic, minimalist, high detail.

A hyper-detailed digital painting of Disney’s character. A spiraling vortex of text surrounds, filled with confidently incorrect statements about the laws of thermodynamics. At the end of the line, a giant robotic arm with a Disney logo is methodically picking up each flawed bot and dropping it into a digital shredder. Dystopian, conceptual art, clean aesthetic with a dark twist.