Several graphic designers of sports content have recently taken to the internet to bemoan the growing use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and the threat that AI poses to their careers.

 The threat is that colleges, universities, and professional sports teams and organizations may turn over the job of creating trademarks, logos, mascots, promotional items and other marketing materials, to large language models (LLMs) and other AI assistants. Indeed, with the rapidly-improving speed and quality of AI-generated works, it would make sense to believe that most sports graphics and designs could be created faster using AI, and at a lower cost than either employing designers or outsourcing such work to third-party independent contractors. But, in the words of long-time college football commentator, Lee Corso,  “Not so fast my friend...”

At issue is the question of whether designs, graphics (or any work of authorship, for that matter) which are created solely by prompts of AI assistants or LLMs, can be protected under copyright law from use by others?  And to date, the answer from both the US Copyright Office and courts that have ruled on the matter, is a resounding "No!"  Unless human ingenuity is directly involved in creating a work (that is, something more than simply typing instructions or prompts into a computer) the work is not protectible from use by third parties. Works of authorship, and the accompanying copyright protection, is reserved for those works created by humans. Thus, AI designs and graphics are placed in the same category as photographic selfies taken by a monkey or a mural painted by an elephant – such works are unprotectible.

College and professional sports teams and organizations should be careful to avoid using designs or graphics created solely by AI. Otherwise, any such work will lose copyright protection. That means t-shirts, souvenirs, printed materials, and other products bearing the AI created designs could be printed and sold by others (putting aside for the purposes of this article, the issue of trademark protection of team names and mascots). 

The bottom line is that sports teams' reliance on AI to replace graphic designers is a risky proposition.  And for the same reasons, it is also a risky proposition for those graphic designers to create their works solely through the use of AI prompts and instructions.