Author and illustrator Loryn Brantz is furious. Her beloved cartoon character, Cuppy, now faces an uncertain future as a product of advanced artificial intelligence (AI). The once-viral advice-giving cupcake is set to star in Cupcake & Friends, a new animated series developed with the help of AI tools and funded by Amazon's GenAI Creators’ Fund.

Brantz, who created Cuppy almost a decade ago for BuzzFeed, is not alone. She argues that this project is an assault on artists everywhere. 'Nothing said in good faith by managers and executives was followed through with,' she says of her former employer. This latest development adds to the growing anxiety among creatives about the increasing role of AI in their industry.

The dispute centers around IP ownership. While BuzzFeed retains rights to the Cuppy character, Brantz feels betrayed as she was unaware that AI would play a significant role in the new series. 'In the end, I trusted them, though naively, when they said they had no interest in continuing Cuppy without me involved if I ever left,' she explains.

The controversy also touches on broader concerns about the future of creative industries. As media mogul Byron Allen recently acquired a majority stake in BuzzFeed and aims to leverage AI for competitive advantage, questions arise about how much artists will retain control over their creations. Will traditional roles as content creators be replaced by AI-driven processes? Only time—and more legal battles—will tell.