ChatGPT’s Ghibli-style AI images are everywhere. But who started this trend?

AI-generated images in the Ghibli art style are taking over social media, thanks to OpenAI’s latest image-generation tool on ChatGPT. Amid the craze, OpenAI’s ChatGPT has also come under fire from fans of legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki, who criticise the trend and have opened discussions about the ethical concerns surrounding AI tools trained on copyrighted creative works. This person launched what would become a massive social media trend across platforms, leading to debates about copyright infringement and the ethical use of artificial intelligence. He captioned it: “tremendous alpha right now in sending your wife photos of yall converted to studio ghibli anime.” tremendous alpha right now in sending your wife photos of yall converted to studio ghibli anime pic.twitter.com/FROszdFSfN — Grant Slatton March 25, 2025 While AI-generated anime-style images are not new, Slatton’s post appears to have sparked the latest surge in interest.