KC Green, the creator of the “This is fine” comic, says an AI startup has used his artwork without permission in a public advertisement.
A post on the Bluesky platform displays a subway‑station ad that reproduces Green’s well‑known dog surrounded by flames, but replaces the original caption with “My pipeline is on fire” and adds a call to “Hire Ava the AI BDR.” Green wrote that he has been contacted by multiple people about the ad and that he never agreed to its use. He described the image as “stolen like AI steals” and urged anyone who sees the ad to vandalise it.
When TechCrunch emailed Artisan, the AI company behind Ava, the firm replied that it “has a lot of respect for KC Green and his work, and we’re reaching out to him directly.” A subsequent message said Artisan had scheduled a meeting with the artist to discuss the matter.
Artisan has previously generated controversy with its marketing, notably billboards that advised businesses to “Stop hiring humans.” Founder and CEO Jaspar Carmichael‑Jack clarified that the message targeted a “category of work” rather than people in general.
The “This is fine” panel first appeared in Green’s webcomic Gunshow in 2013. Though Green has not disavowed the meme – he recently adapted the strip into an interactive game – the image has been widely shared and repurposed online. The unauthorised ad represents one of several recent instances in which creators allege that AI‑generated or AI‑promoted content appropriates their intellectual property.
Legal precedent exists for such disputes. Cartoonist Matt Furie successfully sued Infowars after the conspiracy‑theory site used his character Pepe the Frog on a poster, eventually reaching a settlement. Green told TechCrunch that he is exploring legal representation, noting that defending his rights “takes the wind out of my sails” by diverting time from his primary work as a comic artist.
The incident highlights ongoing tensions between creators and firms that employ AI‑driven marketing. As AI tools become more prevalent in advertising, questions about copyright, consent, and compensation for original artists are likely to attract greater scrutiny from both the legal system and the public. Green’s response suggests that he will pursue formal avenues to protect his work, potentially setting another benchmark for how such conflicts are resolved.
