Month: November 2023

Enlarge / Social media influencers such as merlinthesuffolkiggy/Instagram, have used Microsoft’s Bing Image Generator, right, to create movie poster illustrations in the style of Disney originals, left (credit: Disney)

Microsoft has tweaked its artificial intelligence image generator tool after concerns were raised over a viral social media trend where users created realistic Disney film posters of their dogs, highlighting broader copyright issues in the industry.

Disney’s logo was visible in illustrations made by Microsoft’s Bing Image Creator, which were then posted to TikTok and Instagram. The pictures featured people’s pets in the style of posters made by Disney’s Pixar studio, leading influencers to encourage others to prompt the artificial intelligence tool to generate their own versions.

After concerns were raised, the term “Disney” was blocked from being entered into the image generator, and users were shown a screen which said the prompt—the search terms used to guide the AI—was against its policies. One person familiar with Disney’s approach suggested the media giant had reported its concerns about copyright or intellectual property infringement.

Enlarge / The classic Mini Cooper made barely 60 hp by the time it bowed out in the mid-'90s. Gildred Racing will make you one with far more power, with either a mid-mounted V6 or, like this blue car, a Tesla drive unit. (credit: Gildred Racing)

Monterey Car Week always brings out the automotive industry’s heavy hitters, from world-class vintage cars to brand-new seven-figure track toys, classic Vespa scooters, and everything in between. And yet, a surprising duo wound up as my favorite experience of the week: driving a pair of two tiny “Super Coopers” brought to Monterey by Gildred Racing to promote the debut of a new Tesla-powered electric project.

The company's Super Cooper electric powertrain conversion might have deserved the lion’s share of headlines as the latest and greatest offering, but the company’s previous Super Cooper “S” also delivers an absurd 502 hp (375 kW) to the rear wheels from a mid-mounted supercharged V6.

Taking an expansive view, the pair truly serves as a microcosm that perfectly encapsulates the current enthusiast industry, right down to the differences between rear- and front-wheel drive—and even to this day, I can’t decide which I liked more.