xAI’s Grok chatbot has been a popular destination for users in recent days, as ChatGPT’s paywalled native image generation feature drove the viral trend of Studio Ghibli-style AI images. However, some users have now started receiving errors when using the chatbot to generate ‘Ghiblified’ images, prompting them to pay for an X subscription.
Problems with Ghibli image generation on Grok:
We tried generating Studio Ghibli style images by going through the Grok tab on X website and app (different accounts) with the same text prompt that has worked for us in the past. The result was a usage limit error and a pledge to buy X Premium or Premium+ subscription for accessing the feature. Do note that in one of these accounts it was the first ever time generating AI images using Grok.
However, when we tried running the same prompt and images uisng the dedicated Grok website and app, the images were easily rendered in Studio Ghibli style.
With OpenAI CEO Sam Altman already saying that the viral Ghibli image trend is ‘melting’ the company’s GPUs, this could be indicative of xAI facing similar issues.
Notably, xAI had also recently acquired X (social media platform previously known as Twitter) in a $33 billion all-stock deal.
In a post informing about the acquisition, Elon Musk had said, “xAI and X’s futures are intertwined. Today, we officially take the step to combine the data, models, compute, distribution and talent. This combination will unlock immense potential by blending xAI’s advanced AI capability and expertise with X’s massive reach,”
Why is Studio Ghibli trending?
OpenAI has recently introduced native image generation for GPT-4o, allowing users to take advantage of ChatGPT to create more nuanced images, while also being able to edit their existing images.
Since then, users on social media have been converting their images in the style of Studio Ghibli animation, turning their precious moments into the popular Japanese anime. The trend has gained a lot of traction on social media, leading to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, PM Narendara Modi and a plethora of world leaders uploading images in Studio Ghibli style.
What is Studio Ghibli?
Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation film studio founded in 1985 by Miyazaki Hayao, Takahata Isao and Suzuki Toshio. The company is known for its high-quality filmmaking with hand-drawn animation and rich storytelling.
Some of the company’s most notable animated films include Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Kiki’s Delivery Service and Princess Mononoke.
The studio’s films are celebrated for their dreamlike landscapes, soft colour palettes, and deeply human storytelling. The labour-intensive, hand-drawn approach of Ghibli animators has long been considered the gold standard in traditional animation.
