Essay 2

Since the internet's introduction to the public, it has become an immensely powerful entity in shaping societal culture, social dynamics, and economic relations. While the internet is praised for democratising information and connecting previously isolated communities, the mass weaponisation of the internet by the Global North is inevitable and seemingly unavoidable. Digital coloniality examines how certain technological frameworks, platforms and algorithms - often designed by corporations in the Global North - reflect geopolitical imbalances and reinforces forms of cultural appropriation, economic control, and widespread technological dominance over the Global South and disempowered communities. Determining cultural ownership and artistic integrity becomes significantly more complicated when the forces of the Global North and Global South intersect. Namely, generative AI technology has made it exponentially easier to replicate and rework many artistic styles and cultural artifacts, often without any regard for their historical or cultural significance. This dynamic exposes how technological innovation can simultaneously enable creativity as well as reinforce global hierarchies in control. One fascinating example exposing this dynamic is the recent explosion of AI-generated depictions of Studio Ghibli art. Studio Ghibli is a world-renowned Japanese animation studio which is known for its globally acclaimed anime films with a unique art style. The now-global trend of Studio Ghibli-style AI art imagery has been aided by the broad accessibility of generative AI technology online. Global users with limited technological knowledge and/or skill can now easily generate Studio Ghibli-styled images by uploading an existing photo or prompting a Large Language Model (LLM) to create an image from scratch. Unlike earlier generative AI models, which required users to own high-end personal computers or pay for subscriptions, more modern LLMs such as ChatGPT, Grok and Google Gemini - while providing paid subscriptions for stronger versions of their models - have made high-quality image generation widely available at practically no cost. Over the past year, the use of generative AI has increased dramatically. More specifically, to recreate different images or pictures in Studio Ghibli's iconic anime style. This trend can be found all over major social media platforms - Facebook, X, Instagram, Reddit - where people are not just sharing these AI-generated images but adopting them as profile pictures, using them in advertising, and pushing them into branding opportunities. It's not just about posting a cool image anymore; it's become part of people's online identities and even business strategies. This trend epitomises the complexities between accessibility to technology, maintaining cultural purity, and the preservation of artistic legacy in our digital society. At first glance, this trend appears completely harmless - people simply celebrating and appreciating creativity and digital innovation. However, upon examination of this phenomenon through a cultural ownership and artistic integrity lens, the ethical implications of this trend becomes surprisingly complex. Throughout this essay, I will explore how this trend highlights the complex relationship between easily accessible technology, cultural ownership, and respect for artistic traditions, and how it fits into larger issues of digital colonialism.

Case Study Overview

I chose the Studio Ghibli AI art trend as a focus because I participated in it myself. As a big fan of Studio Ghibli and anime in general, I was excited by the idea of generating a Studio Ghibli-style image of myself and my girlfriend using ChatGPT. I first discovered the trend on Instagram, but noticed that within just three days, it had already spread across all major social media platforms. I even set the AI-generated image as my WhatsApp profile picture for a week. This trend went viral after an X (formerly Twitter) post by Grant Slatton of a Studio Ghibli styled image of him and his wife received over 52.6 million views (Slatton, 2025). Celebrities like Mike Tyson also shared their own Studio Ghibli-style images (Tyson, 2025). A Reddit post on the trend garnered 35,000 upvotes which displayed both excitement and backlash (Reddit, 2025). However, the trend became controversial in a matter of days. Studio Ghibli's co-founder, Hayao Miyazaki, has long criticised AI art. Miyazaki famously called AI art “an insult to life itself” (Nuberodesign, 2025). News outlets like Forbes, Medium, NDTV, USA Today, and The New Yorker reported on the ethical debates being sparked on every major social media platform, questioning whether AI-generated Ghibli-style images undermine the hard work and threaten the artistic authenticity of traditional anime (Di Placido, 2025; HaileyQ, 2025; NDTV, 2025; USA Today, 2025; The New Yorker, 2025).

Critical Analysis

The AI-generated Studio Ghibli art trend reveals how technological innovation can both simultaneously democratise and disrupt artistic production, while also raising important questions about digital inequality and cultural ownership. As Robinson et al. (2015) argue, digital inequalities are not just about access to technology but also about how technology reinforces existing social hierarchies and cultural dynamics. In the case of Studio Ghibli-style AI art, the technology allows users worldwide to replicate a Japanese-specific artistic tradition without necessarily understanding or respecting Japanese culture and history. This highlights a digital divide not only in terms of access but also in the knowledge and appreciation of cultural heritage. The spread of AI-generated Ghibli art also demonstrates what Ballatore et al. (2017) call “digital hegemonies”-where a handful of powerful platforms shape what cultural content is visible and accessible. For instance, search engines and social media platforms amplify the Studio Ghibli trend by making it significantly easier for users to generate and share such images. This is often done without proper attribution or critical discussion on the creations. This creates a scenario where Western-dominated tech platforms effectively mediate and distribute Japanese artistic content, but in a decontextualised way that can overshadow the original creators' cultural heritage and artistic efforts. Greenstein et al. (2018) highlight how the internet reduces communication and search costs which allows content to diffuse rapidly across different geographies. While this accessibility is often seen as an advantage, in the case of the Studio Ghibli trend, it also means that AI-generated art can be created anywhere in the world. This has the potential of diluting the uniqueness of Studio Ghibli's style. This is particularly important as it aligns with concerns about “flattening” cultural differences through technological platforms-a dynamic that can destroy the authenticity and indigenous uniqueness of artistic traditions. Furthermore, the trend raises questions about algorithmic bias and platform power. As Ballatore et al. (2017) argue, platforms like Google transform our understanding of places and cultures through the information they amplify or suppress. Similarly, AI image generators are trained on datasets that would generally underrepresent the cultural context of Studio Ghibli's art. This could lead to outputs that may reflect a distorted or incomplete version of the original artistic vision. This dynamic exemplifies what Robinson et al. (2015) describe as the risk of “digital exclusion,” where certain communities' voices and contributions are overshadowed or erased by the dominant technological narratives.

Theoretical Framing

The Studio Ghibli AI art trend can be discussed within more debates regarding the subjects of digital colonialism, digital inequalities, and the geopolitics of technology. As Robinson et al. (2015) argue, digital inequalities are deeply intertwined with existing social inequalities. These often reinforce divides along lines of race, class, and culture. In this case, the ease with which any person on the internet can generate Studio Ghibli-style images shows how the benefits of digital technology are not evenly distributed, and how the cultural significance of Studio Ghibli's art can be appropriated by users who may not appreciate or even understand its origin. Ballatore et al. (2017) extend this argument by showing how digital platforms can act as gatekeepers of cultural knowledge, determining what content is accessible and how it is interpreted. Examining the Studio Ghibli trend, platforms like Instagram, Reddit, and even specific search engines assist in creating digital societies where AI-generated images can circulate freely. This has the potential to overshadow the original artistic contributions of Japanese animators. This dynamic aligns with what Graham (2014) describes as “internet geographies,” where technological infrastructures are not neutral but reflect the geopolitical and cultural biases of the platforms that control them. Greenstein et al. (2018) remind us that while the internet heavily reduces costs related to communication, travel, and searching, the benefits aren't evenly distributed. Despite it being easier than ever for people around the world to share AI-generated Ghibli art, that same ease also tears the art away from its cultural foundations. In this way, Western-dominated platforms can mass produce Japanese-inspired images, cash in on the popularity, and leave the real artistic heritage behind. This is a textbook case of digital-colonialism. Stepping back, the Studio Ghibli AI art trend is an important example to examine in the context of the internet, geopolitics as it reflects how digital tools can empower and flatten various cultures at the same time. It forces us to engage with difficult questions about ownership, authenticity, and respect in an age that's both hyper-connected and digitally seperated. The perspectives of Robinson et al. (2015), Ballatore et al. (2017), and Greenstein et al. (2018) help to frame this trend within a larger frame of digital coloniality and inequality — a web that stretches far beyond a single trend, and into the roots of how technology controls cultural power today.

Conclusion

The Studio Ghibli AI art trend is a true representation of the tangled web where technology, geopolitics, and cultural power come together. On the one hand, generative AI has opened up incredible opportunities for artistic creativity; and on the other, it's also laid down some uncomfortable truths about who really benefits from these tools and whose cultural heritage is at risk of being diluted or overshadowed. This essay has tried to unravel how technologies - most of them emerging from the Global North - can both celebrate and exploit artistic traditions, matching concerns raised by Ballatore et al. (2017) and Robinson et al. (2015). As we stand on what is likely the brink of even more advanced AI-generated art, it is crucial to ask: how do we move forward without sacrificing the extensive and beautiful cultural legacies that make art truly meaningful? Balancing technological progress with responsibility is more than a suggestion. It is a necessity.

References

• 1. Ballatore, A., Graham, M. and Sen, S. (2017) 'Digital hegemonies: The localness of search engine results', *Annals of the American Association of Geographers*, 107(5), pp. 1194-1215. Available at: doi.org
• 2. Di Placido, D. (2025) 'The AI-generated Studio Ghibli trend explained', *Forbes*, 27 March. Available at: forbes.com
• 3. Graham, M. (2014) 'Internet Geographies', in Graham, M. and Dutton, W. H. (eds) *Society and the Internet: How Networks of Information and Communication are Changing Our Lives*. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 99-116. Available at: doi.org
• 4. Greenstein, S., Forman, C. and Goldfarb, A. (2018) 'How Geography Shapes—and Is Shaped by—the Internet', in Clark, G. L. et al. (eds) *The Oxford Handbook of Economic Geography*. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 267-286. Available at: doi.org
• 5. HaileyQ (2025) 'My experience with Studio Ghibli-style AI art: Ethical debates in the GPT-4o era', *Medium*. Available at: medium.com
• 6. NDTV (2025) '“I would never incorporate this”: What Studio Ghibli's Hayao Miyazaki once said about AI animation', *NDTV*. Available at: ndtv.com
• 7. Nuberodesign (2025) *Hayao Miyazaki calls AI-generated art “an insult to life itself”*. *X (formerly Twitter)*. Available at: x.com
• 8. Reddit (2025) 'This Studio Ghibli AI trend is an utter insult to animation', *r/movies*. Available at: reddit.com
• 9. Robinson, L. et al. (2015) 'Digital inequalities and why they matter', *Information, Communication & Society*, 18(5), pp. 569-582. Available at: doi.org
• 10. Slatton, G. (2025) *Original X post on Studio Ghibli AI art*. *X (formerly Twitter)*. Available at: x.com
• 11. The New Yorker (2025) 'The limits of AI-generated Miyazaki', *The New Yorker*. Available at: newyorker.com
• 12. Tyson, M. (2025) *Studio Ghibli AI portrait*. *X (formerly Twitter)*. Available at: x.com
• 13. USA Today (2025) 'Studio Ghibli's Miyazaki on AI portraits', *USA Today*, 28 March. Available at: usatoday.com