HomeMerchant Uses AI to Generate Kobe-Style Spokesperson, Claims No Infringement; Fans Rage
A fruit can recently went viral online because its packaging resembles Kobe Bryant.
Made by Xilaide Food in Jiaozuo, Henan, this fruit can was meant to win over customers with its taste, but it sparked fierce debate over the portrait on its label. At first glance, the eyebrows and expression are so similar to Kobe that anyone familiar with him would immediately think of the late basketball legend. Adding to the buzz, the slogan "Elbow Your Way to Fame" and the numerical reference "24 Scientific Formulas" appear alongside fan-uploaded "See You Again" background music and Kobe's classic line "Man, what can I say?" in the product reviews, creating a powerful marketing moment.
This time, however, fans were not convinced.
"It's fine to joke around, but don't exploit the deceased." Many users said bluntly that this intentional stacking of Kobe-related elements is not respectful but insulting. In particular, the "elbow" pun, which references a controversial move from Kobe's career, feels frivolous and disrespectful on a food product.
In response to the backlash, the manufacturer offered a highly "technical" explanation: the operations team used AI to generate the portrait as an "original brand spokesperson." The prototype did reference Kobe and the internet celebrity "Northeast Rain Sister," but after algorithmic fusion, it became a new creation that does not constitute infringement. The implication: I didn't write Kobe's name, and the image was AI-generated, so why accuse me of infringement?
But the legal reasoning may be stricter than people think.
Liu Guojian, a lawyer at Shandong Chenggong Law Firm, pointed out that the key to determining whether an AI-generated image infringes on someone's rights lies not in "whether the name is mentioned," but in "whether the general public can immediately recognize who it is." As long as the public can consistently link a specific person to the image based on facial structure, features, and accompanying text, it meets the basic criteria for image right protection.
In other words, when "24 Scientific Formulas" appears alongside a face that looks like Kobe, and "Elbow Your Way to Fame" triggers fans' collective memory, the identity reference is unmistakable even without the name. When a company uses such a highly recognizable image on commercial packaging and promotes sales, it is essentially capitalizing on the celebrity's public influence — which, legally, could be considered an infringement on the deceased's image rights.
Currently, the product is sold at 13.5 yuan for two bottles, with total online sales reaching thousands of units. While the controversy may have generated short-term traffic, in the long run, the damage to brand trust could far outweigh the profit from a few cans.
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A fruit can recently went viral online because its packaging resembles Kobe Bryant.
Made by Xilaide Food in Jiaozuo, Henan, this fruit can was meant to win over customers with its taste, but it sparked fierce debate over the portrait on its label. At first glance, the eyebrows and expression are so similar to Kobe that anyone familiar with him would immediately think of the late basketball legend. Adding to the buzz, the slogan "Elbow Your Way to Fame" and the numerical reference "24 Scientific Formulas" appear alongside fan-uploaded "See You Again" background music and Kobe's classic line "Man, what can I say?" in the product reviews, creating a powerful marketing moment.
This time, however, fans were not convinced.
"It's fine to joke around, but don't exploit the deceased." Many users said bluntly that this intentional stacking of Kobe-related elements is not respectful but insulting. In particular, the "elbow" pun, which references a controversial move from Kobe's career, feels frivolous and disrespectful on a food product.
In response to the backlash, the manufacturer offered a highly "technical" explanation: the operations team used AI to generate the portrait as an "original brand spokesperson." The prototype did reference Kobe and the internet celebrity "Northeast Rain Sister," but after algorithmic fusion, it became a new creation that does not constitute infringement. The implication: I didn't write Kobe's name, and the image was AI-generated, so why accuse me of infringement?
But the legal reasoning may be stricter than people think.
Liu Guojian, a lawyer at Shandong Chenggong Law Firm, pointed out that the key to determining whether an AI-generated image infringes on someone's rights lies not in "whether the name is mentioned," but in "whether the general public can immediately recognize who it is." As long as the public can consistently link a specific person to the image based on facial structure, features, and accompanying text, it meets the basic criteria for image right protection.
In other words, when "24 Scientific Formulas" appears alongside a face that looks like Kobe, and "Elbow Your Way to Fame" triggers fans' collective memory, the identity reference is unmistakable even without the name. When a company uses such a highly recognizable image on commercial packaging and promotes sales, it is essentially capitalizing on the celebrity's public influence — which, legally, could be considered an infringement on the deceased's image rights.
Currently, the product is sold at 13.5 yuan for two bottles, with total online sales reaching thousands of units. While the controversy may have generated short-term traffic, in the long run, the damage to brand trust could far outweigh the profit from a few cans.
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