An artist on X/Twitter was cyberbullied for allegedly using AI in their creations, ultimately leading them to delete their account with three years of work. The incident quickly escalated, and the original accuser later issued a public apology, admitting their accusations were unfounded. The video analysis points out the uncertainty of AI art detection and emphasizes that making public accusations without concrete evidence is unacceptable "cancel culture." To protect artists, the video suggests documenting the creative process as evidence and calls for mutual support within the art community to resist external pressures.
The video creator, Sam, came across a trending post on Twitter about an artist being "cyberbullied" for allegedly using AI art. The post pointed out that the platform is hostile to artists.
The accuser's post received 8 million views and 176,000 likes, drawing widespread attention.
Tweet interaction data, showing high views and likes
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The video creator reviewed the original AI accusation post, which used red lines to highlight points in the artwork believed to be AI-generated features, such as knee shadows, forearm length, hand shapes, and ankles.
Red lines mark "AI features" in the original accusation post
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The video creator stated that they have no knowledge of whether the artist actually used AI and are analyzing it from an outsider's perspective.
Many of the marked "AI features" might actually be simple mistakes made by the artist during creation or a stylistic choice. For example, the accused "long" forearm isn't actually long, and even if it were, it would just be a correctable mistake.
The creator acknowledges that the blurry parts on the skirt and the unnatural connection between the hip and the body, these "artifacts" might indeed be common errors generated by AI.
However, with today's AI capabilities, unless the artist confirms it themselves, it is difficult to be 100% certain whether AI was used in the artwork.
Criticism and the Dangers of Cancel Culture [2:22]
After thorough investigation, the author found that the artist is Japanese and posted a farewell message before deleting the account.
Japanese original and English translation of the artist's farewell message
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The message mentioned that for the past three years, the artist had wholeheartedly devoted themselves to creating Kanroji Mitsuri (anime character) and was happy that many people saw it.
The sentence "Please forgive me for being silent until now" hints that the artist was indeed affected by cancel culture.
English translation of the artist's farewell message
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The entire incident is an "L" (loss) situation for both the artist and the accuser. The artist left the platform due to cyberbullying, while the accuser faced severe backlash.
The accuser subsequently issued an apology, admitting that they "were wrong, very sorry," and deleted the original post.
Tweet of the accuser admitting the mistake and apologizing
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The note mentioned that the accuser mistakenly confused a real artist with AI, leading to the artist being cyberbullied and deleting their account, which is very upsetting.
The accuser also released a series of apology artwork and apologized to the Japanese artist in Japanese, admitting to being "the biggest idiot" and making "unfounded stupid accusations."
She expressed shame for ruining what the artist loved and wished the artist good luck.
Apology artwork and reflections posted by the accuser
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Exploring the Details of the Controversial AI Artwork [4:32]
Another Twitter user posted what was claimed to be a "restored" version of the artwork, correcting the "errors" pointed out in the original accusation post.
After comparison, the video creator believes that while the restored artwork is technically more "correct," it is inferior to the original draft in terms of shape language and fluency, and the original draft looks more like the work of an experienced artist. He thinks the original draft is more professional.
Comparison of original draft and restored artwork, showing the difference in body language and fluency
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Further Analysis of Suspected AI-Generated Images [6:08]
Another user shared a close-up of what was believed to be the original artist's work, pointing out some rendering issues with the eyes and hair, arguing that these features "scream AI."
In the eyes, the rendering of the iris and pupil, as well as the way the highlights are applied, do not seem like what a human artist would typically do. The eyelashes even change the shape of the double eyelids.
In the hair, the rendering is smooth and blurry, giving off a "weird" feeling, which is considered a typical characteristic of AI.
Details of eyes and hair in the controversial artwork, showing rendering features suspected to be AI
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Judging the Source of the Artwork and AI Usage [6:50]
Despite extensive investigation, the video creator is still unable to 100% determine whether these images were generated by AI, nor can they verify whether they are from the original artist.
The author personally speculates that if these works do belong to the artist, they may have used AI during the creation process (such as conceiving poses and ideas), but the main parts are still hand-drawn.
The core issue is that even with in-depth investigation, it is impossible to determine whether AI was used in the artwork.
Many artists incorporate AI tools into their creative process, such as for concept design or to aid composition.
Example of AI-generated character concept art
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How to Respond to AI Accusations and Challenges in the Art World [8:49]
Recommendations for Handling Suspicious Artwork [8:51]
If you are suspicious of a certain artwork, you can directly click "not interested" on social media, and the algorithm will reduce the recommendation of such content.
If you really care, you can directly message the artist privately to ask if they have a creation process video or other evidence. Resolve doubts through communication rather than public accusations.
The author recommends artists to record their creation process (screen recording) and upload it.
Screenshot of the drawing process: initial sketch stage
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If you don't want to record every time, you can record a few intermittently or take screenshots of key steps, such as the sketch, color blocking, and rendering process, as evidence to prove yourself.
Screenshot of the drawing process: coloring and preliminary rendering
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Screenshot of the drawing process: further refinement
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Screenshot of the drawing process: facial detail adjustment
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Screenshot of the drawing process: hair and shadow refinement
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Screenshot of the drawing process: final color adjustment
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The author believes that even if an artist uses AI in their creative process, it's okay as long as they are honest about it. Everyone has different creative methods, and we can seek common ground while reserving differences.
Reflecting on Cancel Culture and Future Prospects [10:51]
Cancel Culture in the Art Community is Foolish [11:00]
The author strongly condemns cancel culture against independent artists in the art community, especially for attacking them for "drawing something wrong" or "drawing an unpopular CP."
He points out that this "art police" phenomenon in the art world makes artists afraid to share their work for fear of making mistakes.
Call for Harmony and Unity within the Art Community [12:06]
Stop judging and interfering with others' art, and let people create freely.
If you don't like a certain artwork, you can block or blacklist it through platform functions instead of cyberbullying.
Without concrete evidence, one should not easily accuse and attack others, which is equivalent to "presumption of guilt."
The art world is already facing challenges from "tech bros" trying to automate creativity and deprive humans of the joy of creation, so it should not fight internally.
The author also calls for not maliciously attacking and making personal threats against the original accuser, even if they made a mistake, because no mistake deserves such harsh treatment.
