Midjourney v6 gets a new turbo mode and an improved image description function. The latter frustrates artists because it also suggests artist names for your prompt.
With the "turbo mode" of the latest version -v6, Midjourney can now generate images very fast. According to Midjourney, the tool is 3.5 times faster in turbo mode at twice the cost.
X user Nick St. Pierre was able to generate 40 prompts in just one minute and 50 seconds, at an average speed of 2.75 seconds per prompt.
This reduces the time for a single image to just 0.69 seconds - approaching real-time generation, the stated goal of Midjourney founder David Holz.
In addition, Midjourney has introduced a revised image analysis feature for v6, allowing users to create longer and more detailed prompts specifically tailored for version 6.
Accessible via the Discord command "/describe" or via the site's "I" button, this feature provides detailed descriptions of styles and themes "in the style of our community," the company says. These descriptions can be used as the basis for a new prompt.
Artists angered by Midjourney's image description feature
However, the introduction of the revamped description feature has led to renewed anger because it names artists whose style is similar to the image being analyzed.
This could motivate users to enter artist names in prompts to generate images in that artist's style. Some feel this is tantamount to copying.
Artist Justine Bateman calls Midjourney at X "nothing but thieves" and expresses her anger at Midjourney's practices. Photographer Jingna Zhang finds it "dehumanizing" that her name has been used more than 20,000 times in Midjourney's prompts. According to Zhang, her life's work and personality are being reduced to "meaningless fodder for a commercial image slot machine."
The Midjourney team has not yet publicly responded to these criticisms. While the technological advances are impressive and offer opportunities for efficiency and innovation, the systems raise numerous questions about copyright, attribution, and the authenticity of creations.
Makers of image and text AI systems are involved in numerous legal disputes, with landmark decisions yet to come. Recently, users have shown that Midjourney v6 in particular is capable of creating near exact copies of images from training materials.