‘AI image generator Midjourney uses problematic stereotypes’

The AI ​​image generator Midjourney produces one-sided and stereotypical images when users create images with a country in the prompt. This is the conclusion of Rest of World after analyzing thousands of images.

At the prompt ‘Indian person’ Midjourney almost exclusively showed up with old men in traditional clothing, writes Rest of World. In other countries too, Midjourney attracted many more men than women. Only for the “American person” prompt did the software come up with more women than men. Moreover, American people are always photographed with a flag, while this does not happen in other countries.

According to researchers, Midjourney uses stereotypes through the training material used, which also reflects them. The problem is that such image generators are and will increasingly be used for creating images and will therefore often reinforce stereotypes. According to Midjourney, Nigerian houses almost always look dilapidated.

In addition to stereotypes, Midjourney also seemed to take beauty standards into account. For example, Asian women were on average two shades lighter than in real life. In addition, it often concerns relatively thin and symmetrical faces. If there are no countries in the prompt, Midjourney assumed a Western context, the site concluded. Changing the prompt does not always provide better results. It is unclear how this can be fixed, partly due to the limited transparency about the source material used and the labeling of that material.