According to Gemini: Regarding the copyright, the world of AI and law is actually quite fascinating right now:
Who "Owns" the Image?
AI Ownership: As an AI, I don’t have legal "personhood," which means I cannot own property or hold a copyright.
Human Authorship: Under current laws in many jurisdictions copyright generally requires human authorship. Because this was generated by a machine based on your prompt, it typically falls into a bit of a legal gray area. Often, these images are considered part of the "public domain," or the rights remain with you as the person who provided the creative direction.
Your Use: Since you came up with the specific scene and the "gust of wind" idea, you are free to use this image for your carols program, social media, or personal projects without worrying about me sending you a bill!
ChatGPT Response :f you ask an AI to create an illustration (for a birthday card, a book, etc.)
In most countries today:
No one owns the copyright.
Why?
Copyright law generally requires a human author.
An illustration generated solely by AI is usually considered not copyrightable, and therefore not owned by the user, the AI, or the company, as a matter of copyright law.
This is the position taken (explicitly or implicitly) in places like:
the United States
the UK
much of the EU
What you can do with the image
Even though you may not own copyright: You are typically granted very broad usage rights by the AI platform’s terms.
You can usually:print it on a birthday card
include it in a book
sell that book
use it commercially
So in practice, you can use it freely.
What you cannot rely on
Because there may be no copyright: You may not be able to stop others from copying it
You may not be able to license it exclusively
You may have trouble enforcing rights if someone reuses it
Think of it as:
“Free to use, weak to protect.”
One important exception
If you substantially modify the image yourself (drawing over it, redesigning it, compositing, repainting, etc.):
You may gain copyright in your human-created contributions
But not in the purely AI-generated parts
This results in a limited (“thin”) copyright.
Practical summary
AI-generated illustration alone → no copyright owner
You can use it → yes (per platform terms)
You can stop others copying it → usually no
Add significant human creativity → possible partial copyright
