🎬 ByteDance, TikTok’s owner, says it will tighten safeguards around Seedance 2.0, its new AI video generator, after a wave of viral clips—including some featuring famous actors and well-known studio characters—prompted complaints from Hollywood rightsholders 175. The company told the BBC it is trying to stop people from using others’ intellectual property and likenesses without permission, but it hasn’t said what new controls it will add 17.
The pledge follows cease-and-desist letters from the Walt Disney Company and Paramount Skydance, which say Seedance outputs include copyrighted characters and other protected material 369. With Seedance 2.0 currently tied to ByteDance’s Jianying app in China—and plans to bring it to CapCut users worldwide—the dispute is shaping up as an early test of whether AI video tools can scale responsibly while respecting creators’ rights 25.
Sources
- ByteDance promises to tighten up its new AI video generator after viral Cruise vs. Pitt clip [engadget.com] (2026-02-16)
- ByteDance's Seedance 2.0 AI video generator sparks Hollywood outcry after viral clip [techspot.com] (2026-02-16)
- Disney sends cease-and-desist to ByteDance over AI-generated videos [dawn.com] (2026-02-16)
- Bytedance pledges safeguards amid legal threats over seedance 2.0 [digitimes.com] (2026-02-17)
- TikTok creator ByteDance vows to curb AI video tool after Disney threat [theguardian.com] (2026-02-16)
- ByteDance backpedals after Seedance 2.0 turned Hollywood icons into AI “clip art” [arstechnica.com] (2026-02-16)
- ByteDance to curb AI video app after Disney legal threat [bbc.com] (2026-02-16)
- ByteDance Promises Seedance 2.0 AI Limits After Hollywood Backlash [pcmag.com] (2026-02-16)
- ByteDance commits to change after legal threat from Disney [siliconrepublic.com] (2026-02-16)
Highlights
- Studio allegations: Disney’s letter accused ByteDance of pre-packaging Seedance with a “pirated library” of characters from franchises such as Star Wars and Marvel, and of treating them like public-domain assets 3169.
- More legal pressure: Paramount Skydance also sent a cease-and-desist, and coverage described the alleged conduct as “blatant infringement” 316.
- Viral catalyst: Seedance 2.0 spread quickly on the back of widely shared clips, including an AI-generated fight between Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt—an example of how realistic videos can be produced fast from simple prompts 135.
We are taking steps to strengthen current safeguards as we work to prevent the unauthorised use of intellectual property and likeness by users.
— ByteDance spokesperson — BBC News
Perspectives
ByteDance: Says it will strengthen safeguards to prevent unauthorised use of IP and likenesses, and says it respects IP rights, but has not detailed the specific mechanisms 1.
Disney: Cast the dispute as a deliberate, sweeping misuse of its catalog, with reporting highlighting Disney’s description of Seedance as a “virtual smash-and-grab” that is “wilful, pervasive and totally unacceptable” 9.
Ars Technica analysis: Described the launch as putting a spotlight on weak guardrails, with widespread sharing of outputs featuring iconic characters and celebrity deepfakes prompting a rapid policy shift 6.