Kartoon Studios’ recently announced Gadget A.I. toolkit, which will combine several AI-powered tools to produce animation more quickly and cost-effectively, has sparked a copyright dispute from Canada’s WildBrain. 

In early development, Gadget A.I. aggregates several AI tools (think ChatGPT and Midjourney) into one package. The result, the company says, could save Kartoon as much as 75% on its animation costs. But there is no plan at the moment to license the product out or monetize it in any other way, says a spokesperson. 

This toolkit is named after Inspector Gadget, an animated series that Kartoon Studios CEO Andy Heyward co-created back in the early ’80s. In the wake of announcing Gadget A.I. last week, WildBrain—which now owns the IP—has publicly declared that Kartoon doesn’t currently hold any rights to Inspector Gadget, and that WildBrain doesn’t endorse the product in any way. It also requested that Kartoon remove all Inspector Gadget branding from the product and its marketing. 

Kartoon responded with a statement last week. “We at Kartoon Studios were surprised by today’s statement from WildBrain, disassociating the Inspector Gadget image from Kartoon Studios’ new A.I. business division. Prior communications with WildBrain confirmed to us that the license to use the Gadget art for our new A.I. initiative had been secured. We are presently in discussions with WildBrain to resolve this miscommunication.”

WildBrain isn’t providing any further comment at this time.  

In related news, perhaps, WildBrain has hired Mark Trachuck as its new general counsel overseeing the company’s corporate legal affairs. He replaces James Bishop, who has left to pursue another opportunity. Trachuck was formerly with global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright, where he practiced corporate and securities law, with a focus on mergers, acquisitions and corporate governance. He was part of the team that orchestrated the US$4-billion sale of eOne to Hasbro.