‘Good Advice Cupcake’ Creator Loryn Brantz Condemns BuzzFeed’s AI Animation Plans: ‘This Is An Assault On Artists Everywhere’

Loryn Brantz, the creator of The Good Advice Cupcake, has publicly condemned BuzzFeed and Amazon MGM Studios after learning that her original character is being adapted into an AI-assisted animated series without her involvement.

Brantz shared a statement on Instagram after learning on Wednesday that the character would be included in the initiative. According to Amazon, the program is intended to develop animated projects using generative AI tools alongside traditional production methods, but many remain skeptical about the implementation of the tech, Brantz included.

In her Instagram post, the creator said she felt “horrified and disgusted” by the decision and accused BuzzFeed leadership of misleading her about the future use of the character, which she originally created while working at the company:

I am horrified and disgusted by BuzzFeed taking my character, The Good Advice Cupcake, and giving it to an AI platform. My time at BuzzFeed was marked by continually being taken advantage of and lied to. They repeatedly assured me in good faith that they would never do anything with Cuppy without my input, yet offered me no legal options, insisting that I would never need them. The news that this character, who is based on my own personality and whom I created as a microphone to spread love and positivity, has been taken and turned into a soulless AI puppet feels like my intestines being pulled out of my body.

Somebody leaked the news to me early on that there were talks happening, and I pleaded with the CEO Jonah Peretti directly not to do it. Instead, he tried to talk me into signing an NDA. Obviously, I did not.

This is an assault on artists everywhere.

I encourage you to boycott BuzzFeed and any AI-produced or adjacent animation.

The statement arrives amid growing outrage from artists and audiences over the expanding use of generative AI in animation production. Since Amazon unveiled the initiative yesterday, social media reaction has been overwhelmingly negative, with many artists criticizing participating companies and creators for promoting technology they believe threatens creative labor while devaluing the work of human animators, designers, and writers.

The criticism has been especially intense in response to the involvement of Jorge Gutierrez, creator of The Book of Life. Across social media platforms, disappointed fans and animation professionals questioned why a filmmaker celebrated for his handmade aesthetic and advocacy for cultural specificity would participate in a project centered around generative AI tools.

Responding to the news, Gutierrez elaborated:

It’s a big experiment for me and I will be as cautious as possible with AI. Artists driving tech, and not the other way around, is my goal. I’ve been developing things at most legacy studios for years and Punky Duck, to my complete surprise, went to greenlight in two months from my first pitch. Cautiously optimistic of what we can accomplish with the support of Amazon MGM Studios. Taking a chance on an original feels like a miracle these days!

That defense of the initiative did little to calm the backlash and instead intensified debate around whether established creators lending legitimacy to AI-assisted productions could accelerate broader industry adoption.

The controversy also reignited longstanding concerns surrounding generative AI, including the use of copyrighted artwork in training datasets, fears of widespread job displacement across the animation industry, the technology’s environmental costs, and the low quality of many AI-generated outputs, including the images that Amazon chose to spotlight its new program.

For many artists, Brantz’s statement crystallized fears that generative AI is becoming a way for companies to exploit deeply personal creative work while cutting the creators themselves out of the process.

For critics of the technology, her experience represented a scenario they had long warned about becoming reality.