Disney v MiniMax

Disney v. MiniMax Inc. is a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by The Walt Disney Company and other major content creators against MiniMax, a Chinese artificial intelligence company, alleging that MiniMax's AI video generation tools were trained on copyrighted works without authorization. The plaintiffs include DreamWorks Animation LLC, Sony Pictures Animation Inc., Warner Bros Discovery Inc., and various book authors and illustrators.

Plaintiffs

The Walt Disney Company
DreamWorks Animation LLC
Sony Pictures Animation Inc.
Warner Bros Discovery Inc.
Various book authors and illustrators

Defendants

MiniMax Inc.
MiniMax (Hong Kong) Limited

Claims

The plaintiffs allege that MiniMax's AI video generation tools, including the Hailuo video platform, were trained on copyrighted motion pictures, television shows, and literary works without permission or compensation. The lawsuit also includes claims under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) for the alleged removal of copyright management information (CMI).

Procedural History

Filing date: March 18, 2026<ref name="musk-suit-2026">Reuters, "Disney, Sony, Warner Bros sue AI video firm MiniMax," March 18, 2026</ref>
Court: U.S. District Court, Central District of California
Docket: 2:26-cv-02128

Significance

Disney v. MiniMax is one of the first major copyright lawsuits targeting a Chinese AI company, raising questions about cross-border enforcement of copyright law in the generative AI context. The case is also noteworthy for targeting video-generating AI specifically, as opposed to image or music generation.

References