“In January, in IEEE Spectrum, Reid Southen and I demonstrated similar issues in video generation software, such as Midjourney and Dall-E:”
Our reading, the sentence that was checked:
In January, in IEEE Spectrum, Marcus and Reid Southen demonstrated issues similar to the New York Times findings in what he called video generation software, such as Midjourney and Dall-E.
Assessment: Mixed Evidence as of
Where and when Gary Marcus wrote it
Marcus on AI, Generative AI’s Continuing Copyright Problems, an Essay in Memory of Suchir Balaji, 1998 - 2024, paragraph 6.
- Said
- Source observed
- live page, full text, public
- Evidence as of
- the cutoff for this assessment
- Assessment recorded
- assessment marcus-generative-ais-continuing-copyright-85e31f-a1
We recorded 5 claims from this post. See every claim from this post.
The wording above is the version this site observed on 2026-10-28. The source may have been edited after 2024-12-14. This page does not claim the wording was captured then.
What the claim commits to
- Kind
- Observation
- Deadline, as the speaker wrote it
- None stated. This site does not add one.
- Deadline state when assessed
- No horizon
- Deadline state on 2026-10-29
- No horizon (the release’s reference date)
Conditions
- such as Midjourney and Dall-E (scope, stated by the speaker)
From the speaker
- In January
- in IEEE Spectrum
- Reid Southen and I demonstrated similar issues
- video generation software
- Midjourney and Dall-E
Our interpretation
- January means January 2024.
- 'Similar issues' means recognizable reproduction of existing visual works or characters.
- Assess the publication and demonstration separately from the explicit description of the software as video generation. Do not silently replace 'video' with 'image'.
Counts as supported if: Independent documentation confirms the January IEEE Spectrum demonstration by both authors, the named systems and recognizable reproductions; full support also requires the stated video medium to be accurate.
Counts as contradicted if: Reliable documentation contradicts the publication, demonstration, named systems or stated medium. Confirmation of the demonstration alongside an incorrect medium warrants mixed.
Retrospective: these criteria were written after the outcome was public.
Current assessment
Was it true for the period described?
Outcome: Mixed
Part of the claim holds and part does not, and the record says which part is which.
Scored on a plain reading. The speaker named no measure for this claim, so it was judged on the reading an informed reader would take, stated below under our interpretation. Both reviews had to find that reading fair.
- Evidence as of
- Deadline state when assessed
- No horizon
- Assessment recorded
- Policy version
- 2026-10-28.7
Rationale
Independent reporting confirms the January 2024 IEEE Spectrum publication and its demonstration of recognizable reproductions by Midjourney and DALL-E 3. The outputs were still images. The substantive demonstration holds, but 'video generation software' misstates the medium. Treating that phrase as an incidental wording error would instead support the claim's main point.
Limitations
- The mixed result turns on retaining the explicit word 'video'.
- The selected report describes the authors' demonstration; it is not an independent replication of every example.
- Visual resemblance alone does not establish legal infringement.
Evidence (2 items)
Supports the claim: Science News Explores,
January 2024.
Why it matters here: The surrounding report identifies both collaborators and both named systems, and describes reproduction of existing screen imagery and fictional figures. It explicitly dates their IEEE publication to January.
- Publisher
- Science News Explores
- Kind of source
- News report
- Describes events of
- Public from
Goes against the claim: Science News Explores,
image generators
Why it matters here: The report identifies the relevant tools as producing still pictures and describes the January work in those terms. It does not document the video demonstration stated in the claim.
- Publisher
- Science News Explores
- Kind of source
- News report
- Describes events of
- Public from
Where it was said (1)
Said once in the sources this register covers.
: Marcus on AI, Generative AI’s Continuing Copyright Problems, an Essay in Memory of Suchir Balaji, 1998 - 2024
In January, in IEEE Spectrum, Reid Southen and I demonstrated similar issues in video generation software, such as Midjourney and Dall-E:
- Where
- paragraph 6
- Published
- 2024-12-14
- Source observed
- , live page
- Access
- full text, public
History
Assessment versions
- Assessment marcus-generative-ais-continuing-copyright-85e31f-a1: Current. Outcome: Mixed. Evidence as of 2026-10-28. Public date not recorded.
Recorded events
Assessment publishedBy this site
First assessment published after both reviews and the final-text check passed.
About assessment marcus-generative-ais-continuing-copyright-85e31f-a1.